Run to You
by kateera.writes
Summary: All he remembers is pain, people asking questions he can't answer, sweat, blood, and two words: "Don't die." (A cross post from AO3)
1. Running Away

He remembered running. He remembered racing through trees, careening around corners, and splashing into streams as he crossed through them. He remembered getting up each time, pushing harder, moving forward though his breath felt like needles in his chest and a pain in his side threatened to bring him to his knees. Running was all he could accomplish to stay alive and there was no other choice but to live. As long as he was moving, he was living and that was important. He didn't know why it was important, that he live, only that it was the one thing he had do. Dying was not an option. Looking behind, he couldn't see if his pursuers were still following and he slowed to listen to the trees around him. Breathing heavy, he strained for any noises that would send him running again. As he rested, he tried to think about where he was heading, or where he was,and when no answers came, tried to think of who he was. Panic rose in his chest as he found that he couldn't remember anything, not his name or where he was running to.

I should find…I have to get…somewhere…my name…what is my name?

Realizing that panicking wasn't going to help his situation, he took three large deep breaths through his nose, and out his mouth, concentrating on slowing his heart rate. There was a familiar flicker of something about heart rates or how to check if his pulse was too fast but as soon as he tried to chase the memory, the flicker disappeared and panic threatened to set in again. He didn't have time to calm down again as he heard a thumping sound of signal drums from behind him and he took off through the woods once more, trying to follow the last words he could remember, "whatever you do, don't die."

Running. Feet pounding the earth and his heartbeat pounding in his ear. "Don't die. Don't die. Don't die." Like a prayer in his mind and the focus of all his energy, the litany carried him onward. He couldn't die without..he couldn't die without…he couldn't remember why he couldn't give up and that missing knowledge seemed more frustrating then not knowing his own name. He would love nothing more then to lay down on the grass and rest for eternity.

"I still don't know what all the fuss was about," the shorter guard said as he scanned the woods to his right, "just because I was a little tipsy while off duty was no reason to put me on grounder shift instead of my normal duty of watching the Chancellor."

"Man Forrest, you weren't just a little tipsy, you were calling Byrne 'babe' and asking her where her tent was," the other guard commented with a laugh, "you are lucky you didn't get shock lashed. Besides, whats wrong with grounder shift? I happen to like walking in the woods."

"Yeah Tyler, all I wanted to do today was walk in the woods, jump at shadows, and wonder when I'm going to get impaled," Forrest said, voice dripping with sarcasm, "this is so much better then following the hot doctor around all day."

"I dare you to call her that to her face," Tyler said, stopping abruptly when Forrest moved to stand in front of him. "and if Kane had heard that kind of disrespect, you would be fucking floated so fast."

"How is anyone going to get floated down here?" Forrest asked mockingly, "besides, Kane isn't here to care. According to Major Byrne, the chances of him coming back are slim to none."

Tyler pushed him back onto his side of the path, "I just think you should have more respect for the man. He might have given his life trying to establish peace. Plus, he is still our superior until he is officially pronounced dead."

A snort from Forrest made Tyler look from the woods he was scanning to focus on his shift partners face.

"There is no way that Chancellor Griffin is pronouncing that man dead," Forrest said with confidence, "she will think he is coming back until she is on her death bed."

Giving Forrest a look of disgust, Tyler sighed, "just do your job and stop being an ass."

They made their way to the halfway point on the path in silence. In one of the gardens set up outside the gate, they took a short break for water and to eat their rations. Movement in the woods drew their attention and the two guards smoothly moved their guns into firing position while dropping their food and water on the ground. They had orders to capture only, not kill, any grounder unless completely necessary but the fierce warriors didn't go down easy. The movement turned into crashes and when a man, bloodied and filthy, stumbled out of the brush and into their path, Tyler had to swallow hard and remember his training.

Pointing his gun at the man's left leg, Tyler spoke with authority, "what are you doing here? Answer me!"

Forrest kept his gun trained on the man's bowed head, waiting for any indication that he would attack. Lifting his head, the man stared at them through a mask of blood and dirt but his features were undeniable and they both lowered their weapons.

"Sir! Holy shit, how did you get here? You left over ten weeks ago! We thought you were dead!" Forrest exclaimed, not quite believe what he was seeing.

"Sir, you need medical attention immediately!" Tyler said, his mind more focused though no less surprised.

The questions were met with blank stares and he shied away from the two men when Tyler tried to take his arm. The lack of acknowledgment in his eyes had Tyler worried.

"Chancellor Kane, are you alright? Do you know where you are?" Tyler asked in a voice he hoped was soothing.

The two men acted as if they knew him but he couldn't take any chances. He couldn't think of what to do next when he heard more movement behind him and his legs were moving before his brain caught up. He took off in the opposite direction of the garden and looked back to see the two men chasing him. Facing forward again, he picked up as much speed as his tired legs could muster. He didn't see the shorter man pull a small brick shaped device out of his back pocket and fire. He felt a bright pain in his shoulder and his head connected with a protruding rock as he went down. The last image he saw was two faces peering down at him with looks of sadness and then blackness.

Don't die.

"Did you have to do that?" Tyler asked, picking up his half of the limp body between them.

"Yes," Forrest said while trying to keep his head steady, "he needs medical attention be back at camp and he was headed away from the drop site. If I hadn't shot him with the taser, he might have run and never come back."

Tyler couldn't argue with that so he just grumbled under his breath about trigger happy partners and wrapped his arms more firmly around Kane's legs. The good news was that their chancellor was about to be very happy with them. The bad news was that Byrne would probably lash them for shooting their leader. Looking down at the unconscious man between them, Tyler let himself smile for a bit. He had missed his terse commander and with him back Byrne might not be so bad.

When Forrest and Tyler came back from their patrol early, carrying the limp form of Marcus Kane, Abby was focused on physical therapy with Raven and didn't lift her head to register the crowd heading to the gate. A young guard came racing into the tent, skidding to a halt in front of the busy doctor/chancellor and her impatient charge.

"Chancellor, you are needed right away in the medical tent."

Abby didn't look up from her slow but firm movements with Raven's leg while the young woman focused on not whimpering, "Jackson can handle whoever they brought back with them Garrett. I am busy."

"They have Chan - they have Kane."

Abby froze in her movements, her hands going limp, and Raven's foot slipped off her leg to land with a thump on the ground. The sound brought Abby back to herself and she shook the disbelief from her head at the first mention of Marcus in weeks.

"Please Chancellor, you are needed right away. He looks pretty bad," Garrett said, hoping to finish his errand so he could run and inform the other guards. Major Byrne would want to know immediately.

Raven had watched the color drain from Abby's face at the news and knew the doctor had to leave immediately, "Go Doc, I can go for a walk to finish this session off."

When she saw Abby staring at her leg, Raven gave a gentle push to the older women's shoulder, "go Ms. Griffin, I'll find Clarke and tell her to head your way."

This motivated the shocked doctor and Abby nodded mutely, running out of the tent and catching the waiting guard unawares. He spat a few cusses before hurrying after his chancellor. Raven watched Abby race through the camp with a twisted smile on her face before grabbing her cane and heading out to find the younger Griffin and Abby's favorite doctor in training.

When she reached the tent, Abby took a few minutes to stand outside the flap, calming herself down before entering. She didn't know how bad it was but she had to keep her head about her if she was going to help. She entered the tent to see that Jackson had already cut off Marcus' clothes and he was busy cleaning out a few of the wounds on his back.

"Jackson, what condition is he in?" She asked as professionally as she could, her voice only catching slightly on the last word. It was hard to look at how damaged he was and not think that all was lost. Her mind drifted to how she could possibly take care of this camp by herself when Jackson touched her arm and brought her back to the world. Nodding for him to begin his prognosis, she focused on the injury list instead of on the person who had endured them.

Jackson spoke with all the professionalism she had instilled in him, "He is dehydrated, multiple lacerations on his back, chest, and legs, some bruising on his throat and I think he has suffered a traumatic brain injury. The guards said that when he came stumbling from the woods, he didn't know who they were and he trained them both. He tried running and they stunned him but were not close enough to catch him so his head hit the dirt hard enough to knock him unconscious. I have checked for any bleeding from the ears and nose but so far, they are clear."

Abby took a couple of deep breaths to calm down again once Jackson was finished listing what he had found. The injury list was extensive and it was clear that the lacerations were caused by whips, repeatedly as she saw the some marks already healed beneath the newer slashes. Bruising on his torso indicated that his ribs were broken but the most critical was the head injury as that could lead to bleeding in the brain and he would be dead before they could do anything. Hooking up an iv into his arm, Abby hooked it to the saline bag and stepped around to the front of the bed.

"I didn't want to deal with his head when you have more experience then me with those kind of injuries," Jackson said as he continued to clean blood from Marcus' body, "so I started cleaning out these cuts. His back is the worst and if my assessment in correct, I estimate that he has suffered days of extensive torture."

He said the last part with a gentle look at his mentor but she still drew a sharp breath and steadied her hands on the metal board they had for an operating bed. He winced at the pressure she put on the bed and handed her the alcohol to wash her hands without another word.

Abby didn't trust her voice to be steady while she confirmed Jackson's hypothesis and her junior doctor needed to count on her expertise so she merely nodded and placed her hands gently on Marcus' skull to feel for any hidden damage. Taking his condition into consideration, she tried to be gentle with her ministrations since the last thing she wanted was to have him wake up before she was done. Finishing her examination, she concluded that he had suffered severe trauma to his skull at least twice and it was a wonder that he had been able to move after the first one.

He may never wake up.

Abby's thoughts were pulled away from their pessimistic musing by her daughter entering the tent and she knew just the thing Clarke could do to help.

Wiping her hands on a nearby cloth she spoke softly, "Clarke, can you and Bellamy go pick out some new clothes for him from the bins? We had to destroy his old ones to get them off so tell anyone who asks that they are for a patient. Bellamy should be a close judge in size and make sure you get a few layers to warm him up."

Clarke took a look at the man on the table and winced, "he isn't looking good mom, what did they do to him?"

"Torture as far as we can see and he will look better once we can get everything stitched up and get new clothes on him."

"Do you think you can save him mom?" Clarke asked, doubt coloring her voice.

Abby pushed her daughter out of the dwelling, "I am going to try my hardest and if he is still the same man then he should be alright. He is stubborn enough to live just to piss off the people who did this to him. I would like to get him clean and changed into warm clothes though. Go to his tent and bring all his blankets here as well."

Nodding, Clarke hugged her mom before taking off through the camp, calling for her partner in crime and upsetting the people standing outside the medial structure. They were crowding the doorway, trying to get a look at the patient on her table but Abyy had no time for their curiousity. She ducked back in to the well lit room and started helping Jackson clean up the multitudes of wounds on Marcus' back and legs. It looked as if he had been hung from his feet, judging by the rope marks around his ankles, and then whipped with leather flogs on his back, calves, and thighs. The flogger had to have made with chips of bone or wood in it as the skin looked jagged where it had torn. The same flogger was used on his chest and arms though the wounds were not as extensive. Abby kept a running commentary in her head, guessing how each wound was made so she could catalog which injuries to close first. They stitched his back first as it had the deepest gashes and when they were done with his back, they rolled him onto his side and Jackson bandaged up his back while Abby worked on cleaning every inch of his skin of blood and grime.

I can hardly see any skin that isn't bruised or split. How did you survive this Marcus? How did you escape from whoever did this? Your stubborn streak knows no bounds so you keep that up ok? Don't you die on me.

Deciding that she needed to say something out loud, even if he couldn't hear her, Abby said, "you listen to me Marcus, I demand that you wake up and tell me what happened to you. You tell me how you survived this and where it happened so we can keep our people safe. Your number one goal was to keep this place safe and our people alive. I need you here to help me make that happen so you better wake up."

Jackson didn't say anything about her little speech to the unconscious man but merely smiled at her demanding tone. He was too torn up at the idea that Marcus was alive. He had hoped the man was dead so that he wouldn't be able to influence the camp anymore There was something strange about working on a man who, up until he walked out of the camp searching for peace, Jackson was sure he hated. Knowing Abby, failure to save Marcus Kane wasn't an option and so he whispered his own words as he worked his stitches into Marcus' back.

"You better listen to her Kane, she gets what she wants remember?"

Clarke came back as Abby was working on wrapping up Marcus' chest with long strips of gauze. Placing the clothes on a chair next to the bed, Clarke stood behind her mother and watched her progress.

Feeling her daughters presence behind her, Abby motioned to Marcus' feet, "can you start cleaning and bandaging his feet and legs for me? He wasn't wearing much in the way of footwear when the guards brought him in and the soles of his feet are in rough shape."

Grabbing her med kit, Clarke sat down to her task, "mom, can I ask a question?"

"Go ahead."

"Why is it so important that we save him? He pressed charges against Dad and he killed all those people on the ark and-"

Abby kept her head down and worked on cleaning off his face and neck before answering her daughter, "because I have to believe in second chances and because we need him here. He has changed from the man you knew up there Clarke. Trust me on this, we need Marcus Kane if we are going to make it down here."

Her daughter didn't say anything as she cleaned the gashes on the feet in front of her but her brow was furrowed so Abby left her to think while she went out for some fresh air.

Taking in the camp and the bustle of people trying to make sure they survived the winter and the hostile grounders, Abby took her deep breaths with only one thought circling in her mind.

Please let him come back to us.


	2. Running Scared

Waking up to the soft electric light inside the tent, he blinked as his eyes adjusted to the difference. His waking body began registering that the pain he had been living with for almost two months was numbed. Reaching up for his aching head, he felt a bandage around his head. Another bandage was wrapped around his torso, holding his broken ribs together and he was cleaner then he had been in a long time, as well as warm. His head felt fuzzy and any effort to pull up memories was met with confusion and made his head ache worse then before. Deciding that the pain wasn't worth it, his eyes searched the tent for clues about where he was. There was pile of rags in the chair next to him. Putting the puzzle together that they were the clothes he had been wearing when captured, he stretched out his arm. Picking them up, he saw all the holes and tears where his captors had cut them off. He threw the useless strips back on the chair and tried to stand up completely. Overcome with nausea, he turned around as quickly as he could and threw up on his shredded rags, clutching at the edge of the bed to steady himself.

"Marcus, you shouldn't be up and moving."

The voice was coming from the doorway and he turned to see a small woman with her arms crossed over her chest and a look of relief in her eyes. She was blocking the exit but judging by the previous vomit episode, he knew that he couldn't escape now if he tried.

Sitting back down on the bed seemed the smartest decision so he settled himself, then turned back to the woman walking towards him and asked in a voice cracked and rough, "where am I?"

She didn't answer his question but the look of relief left her eyes, replaced with concern and worry and he felt his chest tighten in another panic episode. He counted slowly as she approached the bed, calming his heart down even as his captor drew closer.

"You have sustained a massive concussion Marcus, you shouldn't be moving around. You need to be resting."

His head was still spinning and he was so tired but he didn't want to rest, he wanted answers about where he was and what his captors wanted from him. Their concerned behavior was confusing and his only conclusion was that it was a trick. He remembered the lies told to him by his previous captors, like promises of water.

(Water on leaves, spilled across a floor, his hands trembling as he tried to drink from the crumbling leaves and crushing the precious liquid into mud whenever he moved.)

Giving her a wary look, he asked a different question, "you call me Marcus, is that my name or a word for prisoner?"

"It's your name," she said softly, frustration painting her features, "you are not a prisoner, you are my friend."

Shaking his head turned out to be a bad idea and he moved to throw up again. The woman was there with a cool cloth pressed to his forehead when he finished and then another person, male, walked in. He moved to take away the messy clothing and Marcus backed up into the corner of the table, prepared for any attack that might be coming. His two captors shared an indecipherable look and then the man left, carrying away what was left of his clothing. When the man left, Marcus relaxed enough to allow the woman closer though he remained tense as she reached to touch him. She patted his head with the cool cloth again before handing him a cup of water with a handful of semi crushed leaves.

"I need you to chew these and then wash them down with the water, it will make your head feel better."

Looking at the leaves with obvious suspicion , he left them on the table and took a tiny sip of the water before also setting the cup down. Sitting with his legs drawn up to his chest, he waited to see if he would fall ill. Abby stared in horror at his behavior, realizing that he was checking to make sure that she wasn't poisoning him.

"It's just water Marcus," she said but his eyes simply shifted around the room, taking in the various implements and noting where all the exits were. If they kept him in here then escape would be easy and he could find a weapon among the equipment. His look of complete distrust was so wretchedly familiar to Abby, and she left the tent as soon as she was able. Getting him to cooperate was apparently going to be as difficult as ever.

Stubborn man, even when he has no memory of who he is.

Shaking her head, Abby went to find a small amount of food he could easily chew and brought it into the tent to see him finishing the rest of the water. The empty cup gave her hope and she picked up the herbs. Fetching more water, she took a few of the leaves and put them in her mouth, chewing carefully and then taking a drink of water from the cup.

Handing the leaves and cup back to him, she said, "it isn't poison Marcus, it is medicine and it will help you remember things. I brought some food and I will have some bites before I give it to you so you know that I haven't poisoned that as well. Is that acceptable?"

He looked into her eyes, searching for some sign of a lie, and Abby was thrown back to the Ark and watching his face as he decided whether to trust her or not. It was terrifying to see him once more so unsure of her motives but she tried to appear as nonthreatening as possible. He took the herbs, and drank from the cup of water as well. Abby sighed in relief and , took bites out of of the mashed roots and softened meat before handing him the container. Eating was hard for him as chewing caused more pain to his head but the soft food helped and he managed to finish everything she brought. Food meant strength and strength meant escape. His meal finished, the woman tried to get him to take more medicine but he was done putting strange plants in his mouth and laid back down on the cot. His back was hurting more then his chest so he rolled onto his stomach to sleep and regain some of his equilibrium. Thinking about escape when he hurt this much was foolish and he didn't even know where he was. The woman was small and he hadn't seen any guards whenever she opened the door so he knew his chances of escape were good once he received more information. The woman would be easy to overpower if she kept feeding him.

Marcus. she says that is my name. I can't trust any of them. It could be a trick. Am I Marcus?

His mind was turmoil but his body needed rest and he fell into a deep slumber.

Watching him fall asleep, Abby kept her arms crossed over her chest and took measured breaths. As soon as she saw he was resting, she left the tent to recuperate and get food. She barely made it into the mess tent before she collapsed onto the floor with tears streaming down her cheeks. Clarke saw her mom collapse and ran to help her up but as she drew close, she slowed as the sounds of heart wrenching sobs echoed off the metallic floor. Abby Griffin was breaking down in public and the people in the tent didn't quite know how to handle the sight. Grabbing the closest person, Sinclair, Clarke pulled him to the other side of her mom saying, "help her up and into a chair. She needs some food. I doubt she has eaten anything since Kane was brought in."

Sinclair followed the young woman's order, not being the type of person who could stand up to a Griffin, and placed Abby down in a corner chair where she huddled into a fetal position and continued to shake. Clarke had never seen her mom like this, even when her dad had been floated, Abby Griffin had only cried in private and showed a face of determination to the rest of the populous. It was as if all the horrors in the world didn't compare to Marcus Kane not knowing who he was. Grasping at her mothers arm, Clarke tried to being her back to the world with facts about amnesia.

"He is going to get pieces back mom, and I am sure that you are going to be inside those pieces, and then they will come faster the longer he is healthy. You know he is too stubborn to let something like amnesia stop him from being Kane. He will be back up and terrorizing the camp before you know it. He knows his name now and as he gets used to referring to himself as Marcus, more of his memory will return. I know it mom, just have faith."

Abby sobbing into her arms brought the whole tent to silence and Sinclair made the decision to clear them out until their Chancellor had a chance to recover. People would have this incident spread all over camp by tonight but for now, Abby deserved her privacy.

"Alright everyone, lets give the Griffin women some room. They have had a long night."

The camp inhabitants filed out of the tent with silent compassion. Some of the members even came over to touch Abby reassuringly before leaving to their dwellings. Bellamy and Octavia made their way over once everyone else was gone and brought food with them.

"She has to eat something right?" Octavia asked.

Clarke nodded and pushed the food in front of her mother, "mom, you have to keep up your strength if you are going to help him."

Sobbing wasn't helping anything, Abby knew that, even if her heart felt like giving in and never stopping. The sound of her daughter's voice telling her to eat was very logical and she began her breathing exercises that she had learned when Jake was floated to bring her heart rate back into a more natural rhythm. Raising her head, she saw Clarke as well as the Blake siblings watching her. The rest of the tent was empty and she was so grateful that a few more tears slipped down her cheeks.

"He has no trust for anyone at all. I know his name and I am helping him heal and he looks at me like its some giant trick that will come back to hurt him. I can see and fix what they did to his body but how am I supposed to fix his mind?"

Not knowing the answer, Clarke could only stroke her mother's hair and try to get her to eat something. Eating gave Abby something to do with her hands and she finished the plate just as people were being let back in the tent. By some unspoken consent, no one brought up her melt down and left her alone to sit and think. Knowing that Jackson was going to be doing a blood draw later to see if he had any poison or drugs in his system, Abby finally mustered up the strength to stand.

"Thank you Clarke, I think I just needed to eat," Abby said with a brisk tone that left no room for arguing, "I need to go oversee that blood draw so I can try and get answers. I'll let you know if I need your help."

A shout from the medical tent had Abby and Clarke off and running. They entered to chaos. Marcus had Jackson on the ground and even with broken ribs and a head injury, he was keeping the healthier man in place while he held the needle up to his eye.

"Marcus!" Abby yelled, "stop this at once! He wasn't going to hurt you!"

He didn't move as she yelled, staring at the man beneath him as if daring him to move. Jackson wisely held as still as he could and tried not to even breathe to loudly. A sharp pop came from the doorway and Abby turned to see Major Byrne lower her recently fired stun gun as Marcus convulsed with the current.

"Stop that at once! You could have seriously injured both of them with that thing," Abby said furiously, "and he is never going to trust us now."

"He is a danger to this camp and to himself. I am moving him into our temporary cells. You can treat him from there," Byrne said in a voice that offered no argument.

"He is not a prisoner, he is one of us. I am Chancellor here Byrne, not you," Abby spat.

"We need to keep all of them safe Chancellor, and right now he poses a threat to everyone in this camp if he is not contained," the tall woman shot back, "what if it had been Clarke trying to help him? Are we going to allow him to hurt anyone who makes him feel threatened simply because he used to be your friend?"

"He still is my friend and I thought he was yours too."

"He is my commanding officer if he ever recovers his memory. Until then, I need to detain him just like every other hostile we have had in this camp."

Abby grasped her hair in frustration but finally nodded her consent to the move. Medical was too open and anyone could come looking for help and if…when he came back to himself, he would be horrified at the thought of harming one of their people.

She tried to comfort Marcus as he was handcuffed and dragged off to the cells but he stared straight ahead and didn't speak a word, his eyes blazing with fury.

"Marcus, I am sorry about this. I don't want to hurt you," she stopped when he gave no indication that he had heard her and stared ahead as they continued their trek, her mind pushing the words down. She couldn't give excuses. She wouldn't. This was just how it had to be and she would deal with it. Walking back into medical, she saw Clarke rubbing an aloe concoction on Jacksons throat.

"Are you going to be alright Jackson?" she asked her fellow doctor. He nodded, unable to talk while Clarke held him still. He tried to smile but his heart wasn't in it. As soon as Clarke was finished with her treatment, Abby gave them both hugs.

"I am sorry Jackson, I should have been the one to try and get the blood," Abby said with a sigh.

He nodded, "yeah, he seems a little aggressive towards men. Perhaps they were the only ones allowed to hurt him."

"That's probably accurate," she said, passing her hand over her face, "I wish we didn't have to lock him up. I am sure its familiar ground by now."

Clarke had been silent while she and Jackson were talking but she snorted at that.

"Yeah, its like he got hit with everything he deserved in one giant swoop."

Abby looked at her daughter, "you don't know what you are talking about Clarke. Don't presume to know him when you have only met Councilor Kane."

Flushing, Clarke's temper was sparked, "he floated dad!"

A mirthless laugh escaped Abby's lips, "he followed the order passed down by Jaha and he was acting on information given to him by me, even though I did it to save Jake instead of condemn him. Marcus may have pushed the button but he wasn't responsible for your father's death. Clarke, things are never as simple as we want them to be."

The fire drained out of Clarke at her mother's words and she unclenched her fists, "I just don't see it."

"It took me a while to see what you see in Bellamy Blake," Abby countered, "but I do see it now and it is the same thing I see in Marcus so please, just trust me on this."

Clarke nodded and stood up, saying, "I am going to go for a grin and try to find some more of that herb you were using earlier. If it reduces brain swelling, then maybe he can at least remember who he is."

"Maybe it's better if he doesn't," Jackson muttered.

"You two can either help me or stay out of my way," Abby said, "I am going to go check on my patient."

Leaving the tense situation, Abby felt her hands shaking with anger. She knew Clarke didn't understand. She knew that Jackson watched her lashing and that he blamed Marcus for ordering the punishment. She knew these things yet defending Marcus came second nature to her ever since he had walked out of the woods the first time with Clarke and Bellamy, the survivors of the hundred milling behind them. The story of people deathly allergic to solar radiation, grounder blood banks, and battling manic men called reapers had spilled out over the next few days but all Abby could focus on was that she had kept her word to keep their people safe and he had kept his word and brought the kids home with peace following on their heels. There was still the people from Mount Weather and other grounder tribes to contend with but he had kept his word and Abby needed to help him remember who he was. She had never thought that a second meeting with the close grounder tribe would be ambushed by another more hostile tribe and that Marcus would be taken hostage before she even got to thank him.

She found Marcus against the far wall of his cell, scratching his plastic cuffs against the walls, looking for snags in the metal.

"You always were smarter then I wanted you to be," Abby said to announce her presence.

"Not a prisoner huh?" He says with a cruel smirk.

"You attacked someone who was trying to help you, what did you expect?"

"I expected betrayal and you did not disappoint, just like them."

"I didn't betray you Marcus, I told you that you were safe but you didn't believe me and so this was necessary."

"There is no such thing as safe."

She realized that she was standing as close the cell as she could and that her breath was heavy with anger. The pattern of their earlier relationship was making itself known again and she had to try a different tactic. Taking a couple of deep breaths, she took a step back and held up the needle.

"Jackson was going to draw your blood so that he could check to see if you have any drugs in your system. Did he not tell you what he was doing?"

Marcus stared at her and then looked back at the needle before turning to the wall, "I don't like needles."

"I know," she said, "you hate them so much that I have had to corner you in meetings to give you your shots."

"I don't know what you are talking about."

Abby wanted nothing more then to hug him in that moment. He was confused but he knew that he didn't like needles so that is what he reacted to. She needed to do the draw but getting him to cooperate was going to be harder then growing trees in space. Thinking about trees brought up Vera and she had an idea to draw out a memory for him. Sitting down on the ground next to the door, she put her face to the narrow window that ran through the length of the door and started singing.

When you are frightened

Of all that you see

Come my sweet child

To the old willow tree

Hide in the branches

Curl up in the leaves

And there I will find you

'Neath the old willow tree

As you grow older

And long to be free

Run my sweet child

To the old willow tree

Hide in the branches

Curl up in the leaves

And there I will find you

'Neath the old willow tree

He turned his face towards her singing, catching the tune in his throat as if sound were tangible. Abby sang and he hummed along with her till the song was done.

"I remember a tree, it was so small that I could carry it around with me. It was growing in a pot made of clay. I broke it once and my mother cried so I tried to glue it back together. I didn't have the right glue and it took forever to dry but she smiled when she saw it again. My mother…I don't remember anything else about her."

Abby smiled as softly as she was able, not wanting to break the fragile peace between them and spoke with a thick voice, "it was your mother's tree. She wanted to plant it on earth. She-she wasn't able to make it down here so you planted it for her."

"That's good," he said with a faint echo of sadness, "were we somewhere other then down here?"

"We were in a space station but it was dying so we had to come down."

"Space station," he echoed and hummed the last bar of the song again, trying to see if it would bring up any other memories.

Abby held the needle up to the doorway and said, "I need to take your blood Marcus. I can't help you until I know that they didn't give you anything dangerous."

There was silence on the other side of the wall for so long that she thought he wasn't paying attention.

"Alright," was the gruff reply.

The answer given, he held his arm out of the food delivery hatch and Abby picked the best vein she could to get the task finished. His blood pooled into the tube and Abby watched it in a swirl of emotions. He was giving her a tentative trust with this act and it was all she could to remain calm and not get over excited. She had been on a few hunts with the other camp members and saw how the deer reacted to the hunting, jumpy and skittish and bolting at the slightest sound. Marcus reminded her of that deer. The deer had been shot, Octavia's first successful hunt, and there had been a celebration. That kind of cautiousness is what had kept Marcus alive all this time, Abby was sure and she hoped this sign of trust wouldn't end as bloody as that deer. She pressed a soft cloth the the dot of blood on his skin and held his hand till it clotted over. He kept his silence through the whole ordeal but pulled away from her touch as soon she was finished.

She packed her things up into the bag and said, "I will be back later to check those bandages."

"My name is Marcus, or so you have told me. What is your name?" He asked as she left. Her footsteps ceased and she went back to the door to look through the window.

"My name is Abby."

"Hello Abby."


	3. Running Hot

No matter what Abby said, Major Byrne was still convinced that until Marcus knew who he was, he was a danger to the community and as such would stay in the cell. Growling in frustration at the woman and her stubborn stance on the matter, Abby tried to recruit people to visit Marcus and tell him about himself, hoping to trigger a memory and bring him back. Sinclair and Jackson had some stories to tell about childhood adventures and a man named Wick made a few appearances. Marcus, for his part, asked names but didn't respond to the stories. Wick got a laugh out of him in response to something about shoes and Abby could have kissed the engineer if she hadn't noticed the shake in Marcus' voice. She was so focused on trying to fix his mind that it wasn't until that laugh that she realized he was also developing physical withdrawal symptoms from all the torment his body had been through. Her frustration grew and she knew he wouldn't start healing from any of his ailments until he was out of that cell. Giving him food through the crack in the door, talking to him behind a glass wall, and only having physical contact while restrained; it was draining the life out of him even as she could see the marks of his torture disappear. The lacerations on his back left scars as was to be expected but she was happy to see his ribs healing just fine. She even celebrated to herself that they had left his face alone and he looked like Marcus even if he didn't know who that was. She brought him a mirror once, hoping to trigger something from his own reflection but he just rubbed a hand across the growth on his chin and muttered that he needed to shave. Giving him a razor was out of the question so Abby told him it looked fine and he smirked at her before returning to his corner. She held onto that smirk as the days past and his body healed but his mind remained locked behind the horrors he had suffered.

Reprieve came a few days later. Abby was trying to get a few hours of sleep before morning when a guard came knocking at her door with a message from Major Byrne.

"Ma'am, the major says you are needed in the cells immediately," the guard said apologetically.

Abby nodded and grabbed her travel pack from beside her table. It had to be a problem with Marcus since he was the only patient she was tending on her own as Jackson still couldn't go near him without inciting panic and Clarke was in no state to handle him if he got violent. She joined Major Byrne outside the cells and without a word the woman led her to Marcus' cell.

She spoke once they reached his door, "he came down with a fever in the middle of the night and has been speaking nonsense. I was hoping you could do something to calm him down."

Abby nodded and said, "I'll do what I can but I will have to go in and examine him without the restraints."

The tall woman nodded and opened the cell. She stood in the corner of the room to make sure Abby was safe, while the doctor went to examine her patient. Finding him trembling in the corner of the room, she felt his head and cursed at the heat coming off of him.

"I need blankets and we need to get as much heat in this place as possible. If he can't sweat it out then I will have to take him to medical to get him into a cool bath to try and bring down thing fever," Abby said brusquely to the taller woman. She didn't wait to hear the response, confident that at least in this regard she would be obeyed. Hearing Byrne relay her orders to another guard, she turned her attention to the new problem in front of her like her training had etched into her brain. His clothing was sticky with sweat but she couldn't strip him down till she had blankets to wrap around him. Placing her hand on his forehead, she turned his face towards her and called his name.

"Marcus, can you hear me? Are you awake?"

Giving her a slight nod, he tried to sit up against the wall. Seeing Major Byrne did not improve his condition and he tried to stand but could do no more then grunt before collapsing against the wall of the cell.

"Hot," Marcus muttered against Abby's hand, "I don't like being hot. It was so hot while I was crawling and I could barely see where I was going. I felt like I was getting roasted alive but I kept moving forward. Something kept me going and even when the handle burned the skin from my hand, I kept moving. I kept moving. It was so hot Abby but I saved them. I had to save them."

A shock of surprise went through her as she figured out what he was talking about and she answered him excitedly, "yes Marcus, you saved them! You saved me and Jaha as well! I remember your skin feeling hot when you found me but I had no idea it was because you crawled through a vent. That wasn't a very smart idea."

He tried to smile but it didn't quite work like he wanted and the expression ended in a grimace, "probably not very smart, but it was the right thing to do."

The blankets arrived and she left that conversation behind to face the next one.

"Marcus, we have to get this fever gone and you have to help me with that alright? I am not strong enough to move you around."

"That's a lie," he said with a shuffling laugh, "I have it on good authority that you can move me however you wish."

"On who's good authority?"

"Byrne's."

Abby gave a sharp glance at the woman behind her, unaware that the stern woman had also been talking to Marcus while he was imprisoned, and sighed, "well she wasn't talking physically. Marcus, we have to get this fever gone or its going to do more damage to that brain of yours and it would be a shame to waste it."

"Now you like my brain, I thought I wasn't smart."

Sighing again to hide her smile, Abby said, "it figures that when you get feverish, you get silly. That makes so much sense. Can you take your shirt off for me?"

Marcus lifted the edges of his shirt and brought it over his head, tossing it towards Byrne, "you know Abby, if you wanted me naked, you just had to say so."

Abby heard a snort from the major behind her and struggled not to smile herself, "well thats good to know, now just take your pants off and then lay down on this blanket alright?"

He did as he was told though his pants were difficult to remove from the seated position he couldn't seem to move from. Finally struggling out of the sweat drenched clothing, Marcus folded up his pants and handed them to her. Nodding towards the blanket she had laid on the floor, Abby helped him get into a horizontal position and then draped the other blankets over him till he was completely cocooned.

"This is not what I had in mind when you asked me to strip," Marcus commented, his voice staggering over words as the warm blankets did their work. Abby stroked his forehead, trying to ignore Byrne in the corner who had taken a seat against the wall. The soldier pulled a flask from her hip and took a drink before offering it to Abby. The flask smelled nothing like water and Abby looked at Byrne in surprise.

"I wouldn't expect you to have alcohol on you during your shifts," Abby said.

"It's not my normal shift Chancellor," Byrne answered, "so I'm a little more lax then usual."

Lifting the flask in a salute, Abby took a small sip and then handed it back. It wouldn't do for her to do be drunk while taking care of her patient. Byrne pulled another bottle out of a different pouch and handed it to the other woman. It was warm but it was water and Abby accepted gracefully. Marcus was twisting in the blankets and she looked down to see him eying the water bottle. Dripping some into his mouth, Abby counted her blessings that at least while he was sick, he was cooperative. Her thoughts must have been heard because he was soon struggling to get out of the blankets and she had to hold him down while he twisted and labored to uncover himself.

"Marcus," Abby said calmly, "you have to stay under the blankets. They put more heat into the building so its getting warm and that is good. That means we can sweat the fever out. Do you remember when Sinclair came to talk to you? He wanted you to remember building simulations together and goofing around on the memory banks when you were younger. Sinclair is out there trying to make it as warm as possible so that you can get better. Once you are better, Byrne here is going to let you out of this cell that is killing you and we can go for a walk in the woods."

Byrne startled at her name and frowned at Abby's statement but even the logical soldier could see that Marcus needed something other then this cell if he was going to make it back to them. While she talked, he calmed down and was soon mumbling in a restless sleep about bossy doctors. Grinning at his brain patterns, Byrne looked at her chancellor and saw a sight she never thought would happen in this lifetime. Abby was smiling at her patient with such fondness that the soldier had to look away and stare at the wall until she heard movement. Realizing that she couldn't hide how much she admired the strength in Abby Griffin, Byrne decided to put some faith in her, to follow in Kane's footsteps and see where it would lead.

"So, if we let him out of this cell, we need some assurances that he won't hurt anyone in the camp," Byrne said, watching Abby's face become the chancellor she knew better then the softer woman she had just witnessed.

"I think I can get him to promise not to hurt anyone," Abby told her, "the rest will be about reminding people what he has been through and that they need to give him space."

"I hope you know what you are doing chancellor," Byrne said with the sound of acceptance in her voice, "if he can come back to us, we should try everything we can."

Having finally agreed on something, the two women sat in comfortable silence, watching over their charge.

He woke up to a duo of soft voices murmuring over him in what appeared to be the angriest whisper conversation in the history of the world.

"If you try to wake him up before he is ready, I will have you thrown into the cell next to this one."

"We have to wake him and see if he can promise not to hurt anyone before I leave this cell," Byrne whispered back with force.

"I promise to not hurt anyone, now can I get up?" Marcus asked in a voice thick with sleep and Abby turned her gaze to him so quick he wondered if her neck hurt.

"How are you feeling?" She asked, putting a hand on his forehead and then checking his pulse.

Shrugging, he sat up in the pile of blankets and then remembered that he didn't have any clothes on.

"Where are my clothes?"

"Yeah, you are feeling better," Abby decided, "when you were sick, you couldn't wait to be naked."

Macus blushed.

Abby stared.

Having never seen him blush before, she took as much time as she could to examine the phenomenon. He stared back, waiting for her to finish cataloging every inch of his face before he spoke.

"I am obviously not sick anymore and I would like my pants, now."

Byrne threw him his clothes, saluted Abby, and then left to catch some much needed sleep. Wanting nothing more then to sleep herself, Abby pulled herself up and stood to feel her back ache from her position. Holding her head and back, she walked out of the cell and waited for Marcus to dress in solitude. He walked out, dressed and looking presentable, even if the fever had left his skin clammy and his eyes red. He followed her out of the prison cells and back to the medical tent where she gave him something salty to drink to replenish his body. Clarke was in the tent but Marcus ignored her to follow Abby around everywhere she went.

Stopping him at her bedroom, she turned and said, "I need to go get changed. If you want, I can take you to the mess hall to get some food and then we can go for a walk so you can get some strength back in your legs."

He said nothing but took up a stance next to her door that made her want to hug him from the familiarity of his crossed arms and correctly anchored legs. It wouldn't take much to get him back in peak condition since he never seemed to leave it for long. Thinking about how strong someone would have to be to endure the torture he did and then escape, she could only ever see him in that role. Anyone else, herself included, would have broken and died at some point but he hung on, a tenacious stubborn beast who refused to give in. Realizing that she was doing more fantasizing and less dressing, Abby went about her morning routine and then walked with Marcus to the mess hall, where he calmly stood in line for food and then sat and ate with her, seemingly oblivious to the stares he was contracting from everyone. Abby knew she would have to make an announcement at some point about how to approach the skittish man but for now, enjoying breakfast and watching Monty and Jasper toss food at each other was a wonderful way to pass the morning.

Marcus had enjoyed the food and even the antics of some of the younger people in camp but Abby wanted to go for a walk afterward and the woods held dangers, of that he was sure. There had to be a place in the camp to walk where they wouldn't be so exposed.

"Marcus, the woods around the camp is just fine. We have a peace treaty with the tribes around us and their influence keeps us safe. Now come on, you need exercise and I need to get out of this place and clear my head for a bit. We will be fine."

Shaking his head at her enthusiasm, he followed her out into the trees with his eyes open for all possible dangers.

He looked like that deer again, Abby thought to herself, just waiting for the inevitability of disaster. His eyes darted to every moving leaf and his steps were short and quick as if he both wanted to move and wanted to stay completely still. Taking a risk, she held out her hand for his and when he gave it, she guided him along the well worn path to the open meadow where the children would play at times.

"How are you doing Marcus?"

His eyes were wild but his voice was steady, "I am alright though I would prefer to be somewhere a little less exposed. I could also use a rest.."

"We can head back then," Abby said.

She didn't release his hand until they reached the gate and he stared at his palm for a bit before following her in, rubbing it on his pants as if she had left a mark in his skin. With a glance around the camp, Abby saw that everyone was working on their projects so she headed to medical where Marcus sat in the corner of the room while she treated heat stroke, a sprained ankle, and one nasty rash caused by a plant called poison ivy. He watched her movements, memorizing the way she held herself while treating patients versus the way she was around him. It was odd, that she would treat him so different from everyone else.

Who was I to this woman? Everyone else has told me stories about their life with me and I believe them even if I have no memory of them. I have a memory of a tree and of heat. That seems like little to build on.

His thoughts were interrupted by Abby's daughter Clarke, who came to sit with him since her duties were finished. She handed him a slab of some kind of dried meat and ate her own piece while her mom finished cleaning up her station for the day. When Jackson came in to set up for his shit, he jumped a bit at Marcus sitting with Clarke but tried to go about his duties without comment. It wasn't until he needed an item directly behind Marcus and Clarke that he faltered and tried to think of a way to grab it without disturbing the man who had tried to stick a needle in his eye.

"What do you need?" Marcus asked, not looking at the man directly and trying to seem as relaxed as possible. After all the time spent with Abby, he was not as threatened by this man who was her friend and colleague.

"I need the two small bottles marked with the yellow label," Jackson said, backing away as Marcus stood. His stance was ready for flight but Marcus only turned around, took the described bottles off the shelf and handed them to the startled doctor.

"Thank you," Jackson said, astonishment coloring his voice.

"I am sorry," Marcus said by way of answer, his eyes staring at a spot on the wall behind Jackson, "I was, not thinking clearly when I first arrived."

Jackson stared at the larger man with something resembling shock before replying, "your apology is accepted. I shouldn't have tried to draw your blood while you were unconscious, I incorrectly thought that it would be easier on you."

With a nod of his head, Marcus sat back down next to Clarke and chewed on his food. Having watched the whole exchange, Abby was smiling when she walked over to Marcus and Clarke. She had a bag around her shoulders and Clarke groaned.

"Do we really have to grind that tonight mom?"

Abby heaved the bag at her daughter who caught it by the strap before it touched the ground, "we need something for the trade tomorrow and Indra's kids are still recovering. If you go grab a few more people to help, then it will go quick and you can get back to running that rowdy band of yours."

"They are the best trackers and hunters we have and you know it," Clarke shot back grinning as she slung the bag over her shoulder and went to look for people to help.

"What are we grinding?"

"Mineral deposits that have been broken out of the nearby cliffs, the diggers bring them back to me so I can get the nutrients. They are quite effective, you drank some of them when your fever broke. We also trade with Indra's people for their continued truce."

Nodding that he understood, he followed Abby back to the mess hall where people were a little more willing to talk to him outside of the cell. This being both a good thing as people were welcoming him back, and a bad thing as he looked ready to bolt if another person touched him, Abby found a table pushed up against the wall so Marcus wouldn't feel crowded and asked that people step back while they were getting their food. The people did as she asked whiteout complaint and Marcus looked at Abby with something like awe in his eyes.

As they sat down, Marcus asked, "do they respect you so much because you are their doctor?"

Abby laughed, "I should hope that would be enough to garner respect but no, I am also Chancellor of the camp. People come to me when there is an important decision to be made."

Marcus looked down at his plate of food, pondering his next question while they were joined by Clarke, Finn, and Octavia who had been told to help with the grinding while Bellamy was out with a hunting party. Clarke scooted Finn over so she was sitting next to her mom and Octavia sat down next to Marcus with a disgusted sigh. Looking at the young woman, Marcus could tell that she didn't appreciate sitting with him but there was no time to ask as Sinclair and Byrne came over to ask Abby questions. The rest of dinner was spent with people asking questions and getting Abby's opinion on various topics like the placement of the next garden and what her thoughts were on a new kind of shower schedule, while her food grew cold and the kids talked about the trip to the springs they wanted to take once the grinding process was complete. Looking at Abby's plate and seeing it go untouched as another citizen walked over to ask a question, he stood up and shooed the man away.

"She needs to eat and all of you need to let her. How often do these question and answer sessions happen?" His voice boomed out over the mess hall, louder then he had intended and everyone's eyes focused on him. He froze and he fought the urge to run.

Sinclair ducked his head in apology saying, "almost every dinner unless Abby isn't here."

Marcus looked at Abby and saw a blush spreading over her cheeks and asked, "are you alright?"

"I am good, I hadn't realized that this had become routine. You are right though," Abby said, "I can't eat and hold a Q&A for everyone at the same time."

Marcus nodded, trying to keep his temper under control, "I know you want to help everyone but you also have to take care of yourself. An underfed, exhausted healer is not good for anyone."

The mess hall fell silent and Marcus looked around at their staring faces. His eyes crinkled in confusion as they all waited for him to finish what he was saying, it felt both right and aggravating at the same time. He hated these feelings that would pop up, like his emotions knew what was going on but he had no recollection of past events to give him clues into those emotions.

"I just think that she deserves a hot meal once in a while," he finished and sat back down with his arms crossed. Clarke smirked at his nervousness and Sinclair brought over a hot plate of roast and mashed roots for Abby. She was embarrassed at Marcus standing up for her and she knew it couldn't have been easy for him so as soon as the crowd turned back to whatever was occupying them, she placed a hand on his arm.

"Thank you, Marcus," she said with conviction, "I hadn't realized how out of hand it was getting."

He shrugged and finished off his plate, "you are helping me remember things, I don't want you too tired and hungry to function."

She laughed, "alright then. I will try to keep up my energy."

The grinding became less of a chore and more of a party once Clarke's friends figured out that Marcus would be helping them. They all wanted a chance at jogging some of his memories since Byrne hadn't allowed anyone from Camp 100 into the cells and many of them had come to appreciate him after Marcus found them in the woods outside Mount Weather. Jasper and Monty even told about how they got arrested and managed a smile from the usually somber man though he still couldn't remember them. Octavia still hadn't decided if she wanted to help him or not. She was watching the group go about their task with a cheerful persistence, Jasper and Monty racing each other to see who could finish off their pile first, and Finn throwing stones into both of their piles when they weren't looking. She was giggling at Finn's deception when she saw Marcus stealing stones out of both their piles when Finn wasn't looking and it brought her laughter up short. Their eyes met over the group and Octavia held the gaze till Marcus shrugged and looked down. Not knowing how to handle the exchange, Octavia picked up her bowl and headed into the kitchen where Abby was measuring the powder into individual packets for Indra to bring back to the kids of her village.

"Hey Ms. G," Octavia said nonchalantly, "we are getting close to finished out there. Did you need some help in here?"

"Sure, grab some empty packets and pull up a chair," Abby said and then stopped her task at the large shout from the living room.

"What is going on out there?"

"Jasper must have figured out that Finn was adding to their piles while he and Monty were racing," Octavia informed her, "don't worry though, Kane was taking the stones away just as fast. He's got a thing about cheating huh?"

Abby laughed and nodded, "cheating was never something Marcus was lenient about, even as a kid. I'm glad that's still present even if he has no recollection of why it's so distasteful to him. That man not knowing who he is, is a tragedy Octavia, for us all."

Octavia crossed her arms and shook her head, "I just don't see what you see Abby. I know he helped us, brought everyone from Mount Weather to safety and negotiated peace with the grounders and I am grateful for that but I still see the man who floated my mother and locked me up for being born."

Giving Octavia a long look, Abby set down what she was doing and went to sit with the girl who was concentrating hard on pouring the powder into the flimsy packets. Trying to hide behind her hair, Octavia looked down at her task and scuffed her toe nervously against the packed dirt of the floor. Not knowing the girl very well, Abby wasn't sure how to approach the subject and silence stretched like taffy until the younger woman broke through it, back to her usual forward manner.

"I know he is like your favorite person or whatever," Octavia said with a shrug, "but I just don't know how to deal with what happened up in the Ark like its not a big deal."

"I am sure there are plenty of people who don't treat what happened on the Ark like anything less then a big deal, myself included," Abby said gently, "but we all did things up there that were desperate and foolish and at the time we thought it was the only option we had. Life is so much more complicated then we want it to be sometimes. Octavia, do you understand that people can and often do change? People can realize that they made the wrong call even if they couldn't see it at the time?"

She nodded, "Murphy was a class asshole for the longest time but, now he just talks about opening up a school and wanting to keep history alive. He even wants to name the school after Wells which is just, crazy to think about now."

Abby smiled, "that is what I am talking about. Change happens to everyone. Did you know that Marcus was going to sacrifice himself and stay on the Ark just so we could all get the chance to come to earth? He would have done it too if Chancellor Jaha hadn't beaten him to the control room."

Octavia looked up at her, "I don't think anybody from Camp 100 knows that."

Abby kept talking, "he was ready to die for us because he didn't think he deserved to be on earth after what he did. He told me that salvation comes at a price and that is all he has been searching for since we landed here. He wants salvation and to be redeemed and now, now he doesn't remember that he wants it. All he remembers is a tree and heat and I want to help him remember everything."

"What did I do Abby?" Marcus asked from the doorway and Octavia let out a squeak of surprise She tried to cover it up with a cough but Marcus wasn't even paying her any attention.

Turning around, Abby saw Marcus holding the bowl of powder and looking at her with fear in his eyes, "What did I do?"


	4. Running Confused

Silence fell over the kitchen. Abby's mind was blank with what to say and how to say it and what would cause the least amount of damage. She hadn't thought of Octavia and her tendency to talk first and think later.

"You made a stupid decision and a whole bunch of people died," Octavia told him.

Abby watched the blood drain from his face and shot Octavia a glare, "go out with the others, you are all done here."

Octavia blanched at Abby's disappointed tone and exited as fast as she could. Abby took the bowl from his hands and led him to one of the chairs around her table. Most of the table was covered in sealed packets of mineral powder but she cleared a spot and started a pot of water for tea.

"Who am I Abby?" He asked in a voice so soft, he sounded like a little boy.

The words tore her heart in two. His question was quiet and despairing with no hint of hopefulness as if he wanted the answer desperately but he knew that he would hate what he learned. No one knew how to hate themselves better then Marcus Kane. She went about preparing the tea, pouring out two cups of the brew, bringing it over to the table, setting is cup in front of him, and taking the seat across from him, all done with purposeful movements to stave off any emotional upheaval. She knew it was coming but later was better. Giving him time to take a few sips of his tea, Abby told him his story as told through her eyes and it was as close as she could come to telling it truthfully yet with compassion. At the news of his attempt to float her, his hands stilled and he stared at the cup without moving, even the culling was met with his eyes focused on the tea in front of him. It wasn't until she told of his rescue of her and Jaha and then of his willingness to die for his people to make amends that he stirred and she wanted to cry at the faint glimmer of hope dancing behind his eyes.

"You are a good man Marcus and I believe that even if you don't or can't remember," Abby said to finish. Her eyes held his while she watched him process her proclamation. After what seemed like hours, he lifted the cup to his mouth and drank down the cooled tea.

"I don't suppose you guys have anything stronger then tea around here?" he asked her, giving her a small smile, "this sort of information seems like it would go good with not being sober."

Abby laughed, placing her hand on his before speaking, "I will see what I can russle up for us. Major Byrne may have something or she will know where I can get it."

When she left, Marcus placed his head on the table and counted to ten before moving to the larger living space. He was shocked to see that the kids had cleaned everything up, the mess had been substantial, and he could finally sit in peace and think over what Abby had told him. There weren't any chairs out here, just mats on the floor so he dragged a large one over against the wall and sank down. The story sounded like someone else's, like he couldn't possibly have done those things because here he was among these people and they weren't trying to hurt or kill him and so it wasn't possible that he was the same person as in Abby's story. He didn't know how to justify the person Abby had told him about with the way she treated him now.

I have to trust that she is telling the truth, Marcus told himself, she said she wouldn't lie to me and I have to trust that. I am not a prisoner here, I am not in a cage, I am not being beaten and I owe that all to her. But- but I tried to have her killed?

His thoughts swirled around his mind, a tornado of guilt and shame as tears dripped into his hands and he cried for memories he couldn't grasp and for people whose faces were lost to him.

Abby came back carrying a large bottle of clear liquid and two small cups. Finding the boys who made the liquor was hard but convincing them that they wouldn't be in trouble if they gave her some was another story. She had to ask Clarke to get the alcohol from them and then deliver it to her.

"I don't know how they have managed to hide an entire still from me for so long but at least it helps us tonight," she told the man currently occupying her living space. Looking at where he sat shaking, she realized she had left him thinking for too long and raced to his side. Putting the bottle on the ground next to them, she grabbed his hands once more and tried not to snap when he pulled away from her touch. Lashing out while in pain was a familiar story to a doctor and she wouldn't add to his misery right now.

Perhaps it wasn't wise to tell him everything, Abby thought as she held onto his hands to make him listen to her.

"Marcus, you don't remember these events. You don't remember what you were feeling, thinking, doing, or anything from the events I told you. I gave you the facts but I can't give you the whole story. I'm sorry I told you now when you just went through something traumatic but..until you remember who you are, you can't understand your own actions. Don't think that you are bad. You are a good man, I promise. Please, don't give up now."

He was still shaking but as she talked, he began calming himself down, taking deep breaths and letting them out slowly.

"Don't die, whatever you do, don't die, don't die, don't die."

Abby gasped at the litany echoing in the room, her last words to him before he left on his mission of peace.

"Marcus, do you remember?" Abby asked, placing her hand gently on his arm and rubbing the fabric of his shirt against his skin.

He shook his head, and tilted his head to look at where her hand was still soothing him, "I have flashes, but no, I don't remember."

She sat down next to him at that moment, her legs brushing up against his while she poured them both a heavy measure of the appropriated moonshine. Giving him the cup, Abby leaned back against the wall and closed her eyes.

"I told you that, right before you left on that damn peace mission," Abby said wearily, "I didn't want to run this place by myself and I knew you were so good at following orders. I thought it was funny at the time but when your escort came back without you, all I could focus on were those words and hoping you obeyed me."

Marcus took a sip from his cup and didn't say anything so Abby let the silence sit and drank from her own cup. Sitting in the quiet, Abby recognized the signs of exhaustion creeping over her. She was so tired of being tired and she couldn't even sleep in peace because even though Marcus was back, he wasn't Marcus. He was sitting next to her and she missed him. If he was Marcus, she could get some rest, knowing that someone had a handle on the camp. If he was Marcus, she could relax and share the weight of keeping their people alive.

"I have hated those words for so long."

Looking over, Marcus gave her a tight lipped smile with fury in his eyes and continued, "I wanted to die Abby."

Standing up, he ran his fingers through his hair and clenched his fist tight, "I wanted to sink into darkness and never wake up because then it would be over. I didn't want to be in pain anymore! I was ready to give up and rest but those damn words, 'don't die' would echo in my head and I knew I had to keep fighting."

He sank back down onto the mat beside her and stared at the wall while his body trembled with unspent anger.

Looking into her near empty glass, Abby spoke quietly, "do you want me to say I am sorry?"

A hollow laugh was his only response so she pressed on, "I am sorry you went through all this Marcus, I wish to whatever god might still exist that I could make it all better but I can't, and I won't apologize for keeping you alive. I won't say I'm sorry you didn't die."

His laugh came back, textured with pain held in the back of his throat, but his breathing quieted and he didn't move away from her so she called it a win.

"I don't remember who I was before they started torturing me," Marcus said, "I don't remember a life before waking up in that pit and seeing someone standing over me with a knife. Before that, nothing. I feel as if my life has been endless pain and darkness. Days, weeks, months, I don't know how long they had me but then, they hauled me out and told me to run. They said if I ran fast enough and I could get away from their hunting party, then I could be free. I ran and then I was free and found by your people and then you say I caused pain and suffering. Maybe who I was…maybe I deserved all this. Maybe I should have let them catch me."

Abby grabbed his arm and made him face her, her words coming out fierce and strong, "Marcus Kane, you listen to me very carefully. You are not going to go down that road alright? Self-pity is not in your treatment and I won't listen to it."

He shrugged his shoulders and downed the rest of his cup before holding it out for more of the alcohol, "I suppose in the long run, it makes no difference whether I deserved it or not. It happened and its all I can remember."

"I am trying to help with that you know," Abby said with a nudge to his leg. Her mind was in chaos from the things Marcus had told her about his time with the grounder tribe. She wasn't sure if she could take him recounting all of what took place there without a copious amount of alcohol afterward.

Cuddling would probably work too, she thought before shaking her head at the errant idea.

"I am still trying to decide if I want to remember," Marcus said with a slight cock of his head and a small grin at the ceiling, "I have had flashes of sitting like this with you, I just don't remember where or why."

After pouring more moonshine into his cup, she topped her own off and took a large gulp before speaking, "we were coming to earth from the space station, the Ark, and you decided that you had to ride in the same section as me. We sat there, waiting for the ships to disconnect when Sinclair told us that it would have to be done manually, and someone would have to stay behind. I was too stunned to move when you unbuckled from your seat and stood up. You were going to stay behind and save us all," her voice was trembling as she finished, "if Thelonius hadn't beaten you to it, you would still be up there, dying of oxygen deprivation right now."

Sinking down further into the cushion, she tried to ignore the tears dripping down her moment had been the first inclination from her mind that this man meant more to her then as a fellow human being. Drying her eyes, she worked on controlling her tears, cursing herself for giving into the emotional turmoil within when Marcus needed her strength more then anything. She couldn't remember the last time she had cried so often and in front of other people. Marcus stared at section of the wall opposite them, giving her time to get control of herself and adding the new information of himself into his memory banks.

Sniffing a bit to clear her nose, Abby dropped her head against the wall and closed her eyes against the lights. Nothing was going as planned this evening and she wanted to sleep until she could get her emotions under control again. Marcus not having his memory was a tragedy but she needed to deal with it without crying all the time. The camp was depending on her.

Without thinking of propriety, Abby leaned her head against Marcus' shoulder and spoke again, "I guess I need to work on that whole emotional distance thing."

"Everyone needs a break right?" he asked quietly and sat still as he could, saying nothing about her using him as pillow.

Clarke pulled Bellamy into the room, trying to be as quiet as possible since she was sure her mom was sleeping.

"Okay, the burn ointment is over there and use as little as possible for his hand. It doesn't take much anyway."

"That boy is a disaster waiting to happen," Bellamy whispered as he grabbed the tube from the drawer and turned to see Clarke staring at the living space. Looking over her shoulder, he saw Abby and Marcus leaning against each other, sleeping with a bottle of moonshine beside them. He touched Clarke on her arm and pulled her out of her shock state.

"Just turn the light off and we will go take care of Jasper," Bellamy told her, "your mom deserves a little sleep after everything she has been dealing with."

Clarke hit the switch and silently followed Bellamy back to their camp. It was a shock to see her mom curled up with the man who was the terror of the Ark. Even if he didn't have his memories, her mom did and she felt anger building up the farther they walked. By the time she reached Camp 100, she was livid at her mother again.

"How could she trust him Bellamy?"

He stopped and looked down to see her seething with anger and sighed, "Clarke, you trust me don't you?"

"Of course but you-"

"I shot Chancellor Jaha to get on the drop ship. I tried to hang Murphy. I destroyed the radio that could have saved three hundred and twenty lives and yet you trust me to help you run this place and keep order. Why?"

Clarke looked up into his face, seeing the self-hatred she had thought gone in his eyes and grabbed his hand, "I trust you because I have been here beside you and I know you regret those decisions."

He smiled, "so maybe your mother has been beside Kane and has seen something that you know nothing about. Remember how she hated me when I first arrived? I thought she was going to kick me out of the camp and you had to tell her that if I left, you would leave too, in order for me to stay. I hold no love for that man, but I am just going to trust that as a Griffin woman, she knows what she is doing."

Clarke sighed and hugged him close, "stop being to reasonable, it makes me feel like I'm crazy."

"You are a little bit," he joked, "it why I like you."

She pushed at him, laughing, and went to put the ointment on Jasper's burned hand. Watching her give the guy a dressing down for trying to move a burning log with his bare hands, Bellamy felt his heart grow more in love with her. He hoped he was right because if Marcus got his memories back and was the same guy as he was on the Ark, he wouldn't hesitate to take him out before Clarke got hurt again.

A sudden shift in position woke her up and she sat up quickly once she realized that she was laying in Marcus' lap. His eyes were open and staring at her but she couldn't read the expression on his face before it disappeared into a mask of indifference. Standing up, he walked out of the room and out of her dwelling without saying a word. She watched him as he walked away; not giving in to the desire to call him back to talk about what he had been thinking when she woke up, and rose to get ready for the day. She changed her clothes and finished closing the small mineral packets before stepping outside and into her duties as doctor and chancellor. Seeing Marcus talking to Byrne close to the wall, she almost joined them but the thought of talking in front of Byrne made her hold back on her desires and Abby walked to the mess hall by herself. Wick bumped her arm as she passed with her food tray and drew her into a conversation about a water purification system for the camp. She made sure to eat while he talked animately and breakfast passed quickly.

Marcus watched as the camp prepared for the day, eating some of the jerky he had grabbed from the mess hall and trying to decide where he could be of use. He decided that he could use some help figuring out everyone's tasks but he didn't want to disturb Abby again after their awkward morning so he searched out Byrne and asked about work.

"I want to build my strength back up," Marcus said to explain why he was looking for work when the stern woman gave him an assessing look.

Byrne held his gaze, as if trying to read his intent, before pointing to the wall, "We need more logs to repair a section of the wall so if you are up for it, I can set you up with chopping wood."

"You would trust me with an ax?" He asked, mentally berating himself for the question even as it slipped from his lips.

Byrne smiled and waved one of the loggers over, a large imposing man wearing strips of leather around his hips and legs and introduced them.

"Marcus, this is Carter. He is in charge of building the wall and he won't hesitate to crush your skull if you hurt anyone with that ax. Carter, this is Marcus and he really wants to chop wood."

Carter smiled widely, "we would be grateful for the help. This camp needs all the protection it can get."

Looking from Byrne to Carter, Marcus felt like he was missing something but couldn't put it into words. Giving Carter a nod, he followed the big man over to where the rest of the team was bringing in trees for stripping and shaping. He was handed an ax and instructed to cleave all the branches from the trees being brought in and chop them in half. Grateful that he wouldn't have to leave the camp and wander the woods, Marcus set to work. It didn't take long for him to realize why Carter worked shirtless and he stripped off the offending garment that was sticking to his skin. Losing himself in the methodical swing, Marcus forgot about Abby and waking up to her laying in his lap and to all the emotions that resonated in him from her gentle sleeping face. He forgot about the people around him and how he wasn't sure he could trust their intentions. Intent on his work, he didn't notice people watching him with disbelief.

Abby exited the mess hall and was halfway to the medical tent when she registered that productivity wasn't as high as it normally was this early in the morning. Seeing Byrne standing by the gate, she walked to where the tall woman was directing one of her guards.

"What's going on Byrne?"

The major glanced at the people milling about and laughed, "Marcus decided he needed to be useful and I don't think they know how to handle seeing their former chancellor chopping wood."

"What?" Abby asked in shock. Turning towards the logging area, Abby saw Marcus standing on the side of large tree, working his way through the middle of it. Her heart leaped at the sight of him working shirtless with every scar on his back visible to everyone and the doctor in her was outraged by his lack of regard for his still healing wounds. Marching over to the tree, she stood out of the way of his swinging ax and shouted his name.

"Marcus! You are going to damage those ribs again!"

He swung and let the ax stick in the wood while he looked down at her furious face.

"I am fine Abby," he said calmly, taking advantage of the sudden break to grab some water, drinking half of the cup and pouring the other half over his head.

She walked closer and pushed a finger into his chest causing him to take a step back in surprise, "I didn't spend all that time putting you together again just for you to ruin it the first chance you get. I have things you can do in medical that won't put stress on your ribs."

She turned to lead him to the tent but was stopped by his hand on her shoulder and his quiet voice.

"No," he said and walked back to pick up his ax.

"No?" She echoed, anger rising again, "Marcus, you don't know what you-"

"Yes, I know exactly what I am doing, and just because you don't agree with it, doesn't mean I am going to stop!" Marcus all but shouted, letting some of his anger bleed into his voice, "I am going back to work and I suggest you do the same."

Her glare followed him back to the tree but he didn't turn around and look at her once so she threw her hands in the air and stalked off to medical, muttering under her breath about the stubborn excess of THAT MAN.

"Everyone has work to do!" She shouted at the crowd around her before retreating to her station. Byrne grinned slightly at Abby's outburst and then made sure everyone returned to their tasks. Camp 100 and Camp Jaha were expecting guests today and they needed everything in order for trading. Giving Marcus a glance, Byrne saw that his attention was split between his work and the activity surrounding medical but he soon shook his head and returned to his rhythmic chopping.

This could be dangerous, Byrne thought before deciding that it was none of her business and went about instructing the guards in their duties for when Indra and her entourage came. They would be responsible for keeping the walls secure while their allies were here.

His mind was torn between running as far as he could, never having to deal with Abby Griffin again, and making his way into medical, never leaving her side.

Who was Abby to me before I was captured? Besides infuriating?

Being so preoccupied with his musings, he didn't notice when Indra and her people arrived at the camp and it wasn't until he heard them speaking that his mind registered the newcomers. Looking up, he saw a group of grounders being led, fully armed, into the middle of the camp and his panicking mind couldn't believe what he was seeing. They were here to kill everyone. He had led them to these people and this camp and now everyone was in danger. No one was trying to fight so he charged into the group with the ax still in his hand and swung at the first grounder he reached. Ducking quickly, Lincoln tore the ax from the attacking man's grasp and tried to kick him down to the ground. Marcus spun out of the way, hands up and ready for the next attack.

"Stop!" Byrne shouted as Lincoln moved to attack and Indra put her hands out to calm him down.

Abby rushed out of medical and observed the scene with horror. Rushing into the knot of people, she put her hands in front of Marcus and tried to calm him down.

"Can you hear me Marcus?" She asked. His eyes were wild and she knew he wasn't registering what she was saying. As he lunged for the bigger man, Carter appeared behind him and placed him in a grapple, wrapping his arms around the smaller man and holding him still. Rushing to medical, Abby filled a syringe with anesthetic and hurried back to where Marcus was still struggling in Carter's arms.

"Hold him still," Abby told the man and then slid the needle into Marcus' arm. His struggling soon ceased but his eyes glared at her until the closed shut and he went limp in Carter's arms.

"Thank you Carter," she told the normally passive man and he repositioned Marcus in his arms.

"Put him back in the cell," Byrne said sadly, "he won't be in a good state when he wakes up and I don't want him going for anyone else."

"It's not his fault," Carter said as he walked off but didn't argue with his orders.

Lincoln joined Indra and Byrne, handing the ax back to the blond woman before taking his place beside his leader.

"Please explain why the leader of your people just attacked us," Indra said, directing the demand to Byrne but Abby spoke first.

"I am sorry Indra, I had no idea he would react so violently. He is recovering from two months of torture at the hands of a different tribe and has no memory of anything before being captured," She explained to the stern leader, "from what I can deduce, when you arrived it threw him into a post traumatic episode."

Indra stiffened in recognition, nodded, and waved for her people to continue into the camp, "We have had run ins with this tribe you speak of. It is run by a man who takes great joy in causing pain and his people have followed in his steps. If you have time, I will send Lincoln to gather a root that creates a calm mind. Perhaps it will help Kane find his once more."

Abby smiled weakly, her heart still pounding from the surprise attack and said, "I would be very grateful for any help you can provide. If he brings some of the kids from Camp 100 with him, they will be happy to help."

Indra gave Lincoln her consent and he pealed off to the short fence dividing Camp 100 and Camp Jaha, eager to be reunited with Octavia. The three women stood for a bit in silence before Byrne set off after Carter and Indra gestured for the rest of her people to begin the trading.

"I have some of those mineral packets for your children," Abby told the other leader, "and we have managed to build a short distance radio so we can communicate even when in our separate camps."

"We have brought medicinal herbs and all the metal we could find for your repairs," Indra said in return and followed the smaller woman into medical to gather up the packets in her sack. Indra's village had been hit by a strange virus and the children were still weak from it. Finding the mineral deposits had been a major boost to Camp Jaha's value and she was grateful that they could help the kids get stronger.


	5. Running Back

Waking up to the sight of the cell walls, Marcus stood up and ran to the door. He couldn't see anyone through the window and panic set in as he felt the walls drawing closer. He was trapped again, and this time there would be no reprieve. He was back where he started and soon the men would come with their cudgels and their fire and he couldn't go through that again. Panic raced in his mind as he paced the cell and he cursed his foolish thinking that these people were any different from those he had escaped from. Each minute brought memories of more pain and he was soon testing each surface for any weakness. If he didn't escape before they came then he would let them kill him this time.

Banging on the metallic walls, he shouted for release, "someone let me out of here! Let me go!"

Carter came around the bend and stood in front of the door, watching the frantic man pace and pound until he was standing in front of the door once more. Carter had to wait ten more minutes for Marcus to calm down enough to hear him speaking, "you lost control of yourself in front of your allies my friend. We had to sedate you and bring someplace where you wouldn't hurt anyone. We can't let you out of there but we won't harm you."

"Liar," Marcus said, his voice spitting poison as he paced the cell, "this has all been a trick. I have healed enough for you to spring your trap on me. If you aren't lying then let me out."

"I don't have the authority to do that," the big man said apologetically and watched Marcus grow more and more agitated.

Marcus yelled in frustration and threw himself against the door, "I will leave. Let me out of here and I will just leave! You don't have to do this!"

Carter stood by the door silently and let him rail against the walls until Byrne returned with Abby. By the time they came, Marcus was huddled in the corner of the room, his hands bloody and shaking, and his body coiled up and ready to fight against whatever came through the door.

"Thank you Carter," Byrne said with a pat on the man's shoulder, "I know you don't like having guard duty."

"He is too frightened of being a prisoner ma'am," the big man said in response, his voice shaking from the emotional distress of seeing his friend in such pain, "I was hoping a friendly face would keep him calm enough to talk but I fear he is now completely convinced that we mean him harm."

Abby opened the door and Carter cautioned, "careful ma'am, he is not in any state to be recognizing friend from foe. His mind sees enemies everywhere."

Abby touched his arm saying, "I'll be fine, he knows I'm his friend."

Carter shook his head again but Abby ignored his warning and entered the cell. Marcus looked up to find her standing over him and sneered at the pity in her face. He was done giving these trigger happy people anymore of his time. It didn't matter that they kept saying he was one of them. It was a clever trap but a ruse all the same and soon the agony would start again.

"Hi doctor," he said, sarcasm dripping from his tone, "you here to make sure I'm not a danger anymore?"

"I didn't want to knock you out Marcus, but you were attacking someone who didn't deserve it and it had to stop," Abby said, her voice steady against his cruel tone, "you set up this alliance with Indra Marcus, I didn't want you to destroy it. They have all been made aware of the situation now so if you want to come out, I can take you to medical and you can stay there till they leave tomorrow."

He only nodded and stood up without looking at her. Backing up so that he could follow her out, Abby turned around and waved for Byrne to open the door again. Moving quickly, Marcus pushed Abby against the wall by her throat and held her there. His hands were shaking around her throat but his eyes were wild with fear.

"What do you want from me? What is this place? Are you trying to drive me mad? Why didn't you let me die?"

Byrne rushed in but halted at the door when she saw Abby shake her head. Pulling out her taser, Byrne looked for a clear shot but Marcus saw the weapon and pulled Abby against him, using her body as a shield. Abby could feel his heart pounding behind her and talked as best she could to the frightened man behind her, "Marcus, you have to calm down. I know things are scary right now but we are trying to help you. I promise we are not the enemy."

"You said you were the reason I held on! You claim to be my friend but I know it's not true! This is all some sick game! A friend would have let me die!"

Carter entered the room with his hands up, keeping his eyes on Marcus and ignoring the hand around Abby's throat that tightened whenever Marcus moved.

"What do you want my friend?" Carter asked gently, "I know you don't want to hurt Dr. Griffin since she has only been helping you. We know why you attacked my people, they don't blame you. You were being let out so why are you doing this? What do you want?"

"They-they- tried to break me, my whole self and I wanted to break, I wanted to fade away but I couldn't because this voice was telling me I couldn't die! I had to follow orders right? I had to follow orders! After what they did, I wanted to die and I couldn't because of her!"

Marcus felt Abby's breath hitch in her throat and looked down to see his hand squeezing her slender neck while she tried to take shallow breaths and not pass out. Horror crossed his face and he pushed her into Carters arms, retreating to the corner. His mind was being bombarded by images of the past and emotional turmoil and the memories flooded all his senses until he was rocking on the floor in tears.

I will do whatever it takes to see that the human race survives.

The law is very clear on these matters.

Three hundred and twenty people dying.

Explosion and heat and Abby and saving her.

Jake. Clarke. Abby. Thelonius. Mother dying in his arms. A tree in a clay pot that he brought to earth. Surviving.

Abby in pain, again. Again. Again.

Abby watched his breakdown with a hand around her throat, trying to regain her calm and figure out what was happening to him. Hearing him talk of breaking his whole self brought rage to the forefront of Abby's mind and she wanted nothing more then to have Raven rig a bomb and throw it into the camp of whoever had done these horrors to Marcus. Justice would have to wait because the man who had just tried to strangle her, still needed her.

"We need to get out of here Chancellor," Byrne said, touching her arm to guide her out the door. Abby didn't move. Marcus was rocking back and forth, holding his head and muttering words low and fast. She pulled away from Major Byrne who struggled not to just throw the woman over her shoulder and take her away from the obviously troubled man. Crouching down in front of him, Abby listened to what he was saying and then in complete disregard for her safety, pushed Marcus forward so she could sit behind him and hold him still.

"Someone fetch me a bucket and some water and blankets. I think his memories are coming back," Abby said while she rubbed Marcus' back. Getting him calm was her main focus, she would worry about her throat later. She would worry about his confessions later. Carter left to do as Abby requested and Byrne moved further into the room, sitting in her standard spot next to the door.

"What is the bucket for?" Byrne asked, resting her gun across her knees and watching Marcus' tremors.

"He is most likely going to throw up once he calms down and I don't want someone to have to clean this floor after that," Abby said and gave the other woman a small smile, "at least this way, he will remember why I'm so annoying instead of going on instinct."

"It is good to annoy men every now and then."

"Oh, you are on my side now?" Abby asked with a look of astonishment even as her circles on Marcus' back remained steady.

"I am on the side of this camp ma'am. After Kane came back with the kids and the peace treaty, it was brought to my attention very ardently that the best thing for this camp was a working partnership between you and Kane," Byrne said as if it were obvious.

"Those kids rescued themselves you know," Abby said with a laugh, deciding to ignore the idea of her and Marcus in any kind of partnership. They worked well together for sure but it wasn't as if they didn't have plenty to disagree about.

Byrne snorted, "so they say, but I wonder if the mountain men just didn't realize how big of a pain in the ass they were and let them go to avoid all the stress."

"One of those pain in the ass kids is my daughter," Abby warned her with a grin.

"Yeah, so we have a clear idea of who she get the "pain in the ass" gene from," Byrne shot back though the smile on her face gave her away. It was a strange sight but Abby liked that it made the tough woman a little softer.

Abby gave a soft smile in return, "if you had only known my late husband, you would know how wrong you are in that matter."

Carter came back with the blankets, the bucket, and Lincoln with a small bowl filled with crushed herbs and water at that moment and the discussion of her daughters rebellious genes ended.

"What do you want?" Byrne asked toward the large grounder with her usual bluntness.

Lincoln ignored the woman and went over to where Marcus was curled in the fetal position in front of Abby.

He held the bowel out to the doctor, "if you can get him to drink this, Indra says it will calm him down. Is he going to be alright?"

Abby nodded, "he is having sensory overload right now due to regaining all his memories. It can happen when something traumatic is the trigger. We just have to wait it out but having him calm will help."

"I am glad he is remembering, he is a good man," Lincoln said taciturn as ever. It seemed the big man held no grudges for this morning and Abby let her worried mind relax a little bit.

"Thank you Lincoln, do you think you could help me administer?" Abby asked as she pulled Marcus back so they would have access to his mouth.

"I will hold him still if you would like," he said and she moved to allow him in her previous position.

"He may throw this up so lets only use half of the bowl for now," Abby told him and took the bowl. Holding it up to his mouth, she coaxed the liquid into him and helped him swallow it down with her fingers over his throat. He was calming down but his body still shook with the shock so she wrapped the blankets around him and went back to rubbing his back.

"Come back to us Marcus," she whispered in his ear and he looked up at her, registering who she was at last.

"Abby," he whispered back, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry"

"No, its alright, Indra isn't holding a grudge," she told him, smiling wide at the look of recognition in his eyes, "see, Lincoln is fine and you are alright. It's alright."

He shook his head, his hand reaching up to lightly touch the side of her neck. Abby registered his movement and clasped his hand in hers.

"It's alright, I am fine and you are back so it was worth it."

"Never worth it," he said but no other words came out as he began to feel nauseated. He leaned over and Abby held the bucket beneath his face as he emptied his stomach into it. After he was finished being sick, Abby had him drink down the rest of the mixture in the bowl and they sat as the drug made it's way through his system. Once he was relaxed, Byrne and Carter helped him walk into medical and Abby set up a cot to keep an eye on him throughout the night. She wasn't going to lose sight of him until the sun rose and he still knew who he was.

"You don't have to stay with me," he told her as she worked, his words slurring a bit from the drug, "I will be fine here alone."

Abby ignored him, asking Jackson for another set of blankets for the both of them and then settling into the cot. The younger doctor brought the blankets and said goodnight before heading to his own tent. Once it was just the two of them, Abby relaxed her shoulders and let the weight of the day slide off.

"I'm just going to be sleeping Abby," Marcus said, trying again to get her to search out her own tent.

Abby gave him her patented 'I-will-do-what-I-want' look and he wanted to laugh from the familiarity of that sight. He knew logistically that he had been in the camp these past few days but it was as if it had happened to a different person. Everything from that time felt sharp and hazy at the same time. He now knew who he was again, for better or worse.

"Close your eyes Marcus," Abby told him, "you need sleep after today's events and we can take stock of everything in the morning."

Marcus looked at her, sitting on her little cot with her hands pulling and twisting at the sheets, and said, "come here Abby."

Giving him an odd look, she walked over to his bed and automatically checked his temperature. Reaching out, Marcus held her head up and examined her neck where the marks from his previous attempt at strangulation were forming on her tan skin. She drew back from him and wrapped her arms around herself.

"They are fine Marcus," she said quietly, "they don't even hurt."

He shook his head and looked down in shame, "I am sorry Abby. I-I just can't seem to help hurting you."

"You weren't yourself Marcus, and you were scared of being tortured again. I don't blame you," Abby said, coming back to place her hands on his shoulders.

"I blame me," he said in retaliation, and she tilted his head to make him look her in the eyes.

"That's because you are a good man," she said firmly, in a voice brooked no argument.

She smoothed out the wrinkles in his shirt and pressed him down onto the bed, "now get some sleep. You are going to be needed tomorrow."

Marcus laid down but kept talking in a voice full of sleep, "how am I to be needed tomorrow?"

Abby pressed her hand into his and made him look at her, "we all need you, Marcus, even when you are being a hard ass, you help everyone here. You help me and-and I need you."

The last part of her sentence trailed off a bit but his sharp look told her that he heard, "don't say things like that, the world will end and we just got here."

Abby let out a huff, "you aren't allowed to have a sense of humor. It messes with the order of things."

"Yes ma'am," he told her and closed his eyes, "I am going to sleep now because I don't believe I have a choice."

Abby squeezed his hand, "I'll see you in the morning."

Walking back to the cot, she massaged the hand he had held so tightly and then decided not to think about anything till the morning. Her mind was too happy that he was back to think of what the mornings repercussions would hold. People had seen Marcus attack Lincoln and now people would see the marks on her neck but even with all the worry she could be doing, her brain focused on the joy of having him back.

"Goodnight Abby," Marcus muttered, his speech slurring as he fell asleep, "I'm glad you're here."

"Goodnight Marcus," Abby replied, his last words echoing from her mind to her heart like an electric shock. Holding back the impulse to , Abby draped her blanket over her body and watched him sleeping from across the room until her eyelids became too heavy to keep open.

Thank you, thank you for sending him back, she thought to the universe before falling asleep.


	6. Too Stubborn to Run

The morning sun brought Marcus back into the world, his mind restored though still reeling and his body sore from the extensive punishment he put it through yesterday. Groaning at the stiffness in his legs and arms, he tried sitting up only to have Abby come scampering next to his bed, her eyes full of worry.

"Morning Abby, how did you sleep?" He asked, his smile breaking up the sentence as if it were a normal day and a normal question for him to ask.

"How are you feeling? Do you still remember everything?" She asked in return, checking to make sure his eyes were tracking and that his temperature was normal.

"I believe I asked you first but, yeah, I remember everything. I'm feeling sore from being an idiot yesterday though," he said lightly, stretching out his legs and swinging them over the side of the bed.

Wrapping her arms around him without warning, Abby squeezed him in a hug and rested her head on his shoulders, not caring about who could walk in and see them. Marcus was startled but only hesitated a moment before returning her hug, enveloping her completely in his arms and holding on tight. Swallowing hard to keep from crying in relief, Abby held on to him like she would never let go and a few tears escaped her eyes to fall on his bare skin.

He held her a little tighter, whispering, "I'm back, I'm here."

"Are you guys aw-" Clarke stopped in mid sentence at the opening of the tent and stared at the sight of her mother hugging Marcus Kane with all her being.

At the sound of Clarke's voice, Abby untangled herself from his arms and wiped at her eyes before turning around to smile at her daughter, "yeah we're awake. Is the grounder delegation leaving?"

"Yeah," Clarke said with a frown, "they were asking for you."

"Alright, I'll be there as soon as I can," Abby said with another smile and Clarke nodded before exiting the tent in a hurry.

Marcus kept his head down while Abby and her daughter talked but at the information that Indra's people were leaving, he eased himself off the bed and made for the door, slipping a thin shirt over his head as he went. He had to apologize to Indra for his behavior and then apologize to Lincoln as well. He liked the quiet man and couldn't afford to lose his support with the stern Indra.

"Marcus wait!" Abby called and went after him. Clarke was waiting for her mom when they came barreling out of the tent and she fell into step behind her mother, noticing red marks around Abby's throat and feeling as if she were missing an important piece of information. She would have to get answers later though as she could see Indra's party up ahead and her mom seemed desperate to stop Marcus from talking to the forbidding grounder.

Marcus and Abby approached Indra together and two men stepped in front of their leader to protect her. Marcus held up his hands and stopped moving, showing that he was no longer a threat to their leader.

"Indra," he called, "I have come to offer my apologies and receive whatever punishment is necessary to keep peace between us."

Abby gasped and tried to pull Marcus behind her but he stood as sturdy as he always had and she couldn't move him.

Calling out to Indra as she clutched at his arm, Abby said, "Please, there is no need for punishment, he wasn't thinking clearly."

"I attacked Lincoln, that doesn't change regardless of my state of mind Abby," Marcus said with a glare, pulling his arm out of her grasp and stepping away from her.

Indra watched them glaring at each other with amusement before answering, "I am leaving for home and as Lincoln has assured me that your memories have returned, I will not seek retribution for the attack. He was not injured and we do understand the circumstances. I would say if Lincoln does not wish to enact retribution, then all is forgiven."

Marcus bowed his head, drawing a sharp breath to argue but Abby put a hand on his arm and shook her head at him. He was not going to get himself into further trouble just because he wanted to hold onto his self-hatred and Abby wouldn't allow him to go through any more trauma after she just got him back.

Abby drew a shakey breath and walked toward the tough grounder leader, "thank you Indra. Marcus is too stubborn for his own good. I hope you have a safe journey and I hope the mineral packets keep helping."

"We like a little stubborn in our men," Indra said with a smile, and yes, the packets have been doing their job nicely, thank you."

Indra then drew Abby close and whispered in her ear, "if you care so much for him, take him to bed and have done with it. You are both stubborn so it will be good for you to settle down."

With a final wave to the camp and a pat on the arm to the stunned Abby, Indra led her people through the sturdy gate and they melted into the woods. Abby stood until the last grounder disappeared and tried to organize her jumbled thoughts. Being mad at Marcus seemed the safest path so she turned to him with fire in her eyes.

"Why do you have to be so infuriating? Why would you offer to have them punish you when you are still healing from being tortured for two months?" She shouted at him.

Marcus pursed his lips and walked away without a word. Searching out Lincoln was his next course of action and even with a furious Doctor Griffin shouting at him, he would do this his way. His sense of justice demanded it. Lincoln proved easy to find as no one wanted to stand in the way of Kane on a mission and an encounter with Wick directed him to Camp 100. Wick was carrying a piece of scrap metal over to where Raven was in the middle of welding repairs on the station when Marcus stalked by. Having no sense of self-preservation, Wick dropped his load of metal off at Raven's workbench and followed after the man on a mission. Marcus arrived at the line of cut trees indicating the border between Camp Jaha and Camp 100 to see Lincoln and Octavia sitting on the rough stumps, talking quietly. Seeing Marcus approaching, Octavia pointed him out to Lincoln and then kissed the tall grounder before disappearing into the camp behind her.

"Lincoln, can I have a word?" Marcus asked, standing as straight at his worn body would allow.

The younger man nodded and walked with Marcus to the other end of the stump line, sitting down on one of the shorn trees and waiting for him to talk. The older man paced in front of him, releasing some of his aggravation before speaking.

"I came to apologize from my behavior this morning," Marcus began, his voice steady if a bit rough as he looked at Lincoln's unwavering expression, "I know that I have not been myself lately but that is no excuse for attacking you. I am willing to do what it takes to make things right and keep the peace between our people."

Lincoln placed a large hand on Marcus' shoulder, "I know you were not in your right mind Marcus and we are friends. The peace is kept and there is no apology needed."

Sitting down next to Lincoln, Marcus leaned his head into his hands and groaned, "I don't believe in actions without consequences Lincoln, especially not my own."

"You are a good man Marcus and it is part the time for you to see that," Lincoln told him, "I know a little of what you have been through so I can tell you that your actions were reasonable considering the circumstances. Now you are back in your head and all will be well. Abby will make sure of that at least."

At Abby's name, Marcus dropped down onto one of the stumps and with his head between his legs and sighed.

Coming up to stand in front of the two men, Wick took stock of Marcus' distress and collapsed on the ground in front of his leader and friend with a groan. They sat in silence for a few minutes before Wick spoke.

"So, Abby looks like she is going to skin the next person who walks into medical," the engineer said with a laugh.

Marcus' head popped up at the mention of Abby's name to see Wick grinning at him.

Giving the younger man a glare, Marcus turned back to Lincoln,"Please tell me you have something for me to do to make up for what happened yesterday and then I'll leave."

Lincoln stared at his friend for a minute before answering, "if you are able, I would appreciate your help in patching the wall and then, I want us to set up a training schedule for Camp 100 so that they can defend themselves properly from attacks. "

Marcus let out a huff, "the wall I can do but training those kids is going to take more patience then I think I have these days. It will have to happen after I am fully recovered or-"

"Or else Abby will make sure he never leaves medical again," Wick chimed in, earning him a smack on the shoulder from Marcus and a slight smirk from Lincoln.

"I can start on sword and rough hand to hand," Lincoln said, returning to the conversation, "until you are well enough to join me."

They clasped their arms together to seal the deal and Marcus flinched at the gesture but did not back down. He would not let those men break him apart.

Noticing Marcus' reaction, Wick nudged Lincoln and asked, "can anyone get in on this training cause personally, I want to at least be able to watch Marcus systematically lose his cool if I can't actively participate in it."

Lincoln answered with a wider smirk and his remark earned him another shove from Marcus but the man no longer looked like he was going to bolt for the nearest gate so Wick took it with grace and stood to walk with Marcus back into the heart of Camp Jaha while Lincoln walked back to where Octavia was sitting with a final wave at his friends.

As they entered the busy hub of the camp, Marcus asked, "how upset is she?"

Wick smiled, "I think you are in for some serious glares but I think she will eventually say she understands. You could just kiss her and bypass the whole thing though."

Stopping in his tracks, Marcus turned to Wick with a look of suspicion and a tinge of murder so the younger man held up his hands in surrender.

"Hey, you weren't all here when you arrived so you don't really know but I saw. She broke down when she found out you didn't have your memory and in front of everybody. It's like she was holding it all in until we found you and then when you weren't you, she lost it."

"Keep your voice down," Marcus hissed at his younger friend, "and don't talk about your Chancellor like that. You owe her your respect."

Wick nodded quickly, ducking his head in embarrassment, "sure thing, sorry."

The silence didn't last long though, "You know, people respect you around here too dude and we could all do with seeing some happiness right now. It might boost morale."

Looking over to where the medical center was busy with the days incidents, Marcus tried not to react to Wick's less then decorous comments.

"Get back to work Wick, and thank you," he said with a squeeze to the young man's shoulder.

"For what?" Wick asked with the grin Marcus was so familiar with.

"For being your usual pain in the ass," he answered with a laugh, "and for not treating me like an invalid."

"You're tough man," Wick said with a shrug, "I'm not worried."

With a final nod farewell, Marcus left the engineer to find Raven and explain his absence to the prickly mechanic while he went to face his own trial. Walking into the medical center, he found Abby and Jackson sitting around a small table, going over yesterday's supplies and writing lists for the gathering teams. Jackson gave him a side eye but didn't say anything as he walked over to their table and stood next to Abby.

"Chancellor, can I have a word?" He asked, hoping a professional manner would keep her from turning him away. It didn't work.

Looking up from her pad, she frowned, "I don't have time to argue with you Kane."

"Abby."

His voice was tired and gentle and she sighed. Letting Jackson take her pad to continue inventory, she stood and walked to where Marcus had moved, waiting by the operation table. Giving him an assessing look, Abby couldn't see any new injuries so the talk with Lincoln must have gone alright. Not that she thought the quiet grounder would make a fuss about the attack since it brought Marcus back to them and the two of them were friends. Her mind was in shambles about the whole morning though and she wanted to hear his explanation since she had been having both sides of the argument inside her brain for the last hour.

"What is it?"

He sighed and ran his hands through his hair before speaking, "Abby, I know you didn't approve of my actions this morning but I was hoping you would give me a chance to explain."

Crossing her arms, Abby leaned against the wall and waited for him to keep talking. She knew what he was going to say and it scared her to know that while logically she knew he had been right to do it, she had been so terrified that it hadn't mattered.

"I brokered this peace Abby," he said, hands clenching at his side, "if I had ruined it, if I had caused this camp any more trouble - even though I didn't have my memories at the time, I wouldn't be able to live with myself once they came back. Indra and her commander needed to know that we do accept responsibility for our actions, regardless of the circumstances around them. I've made plenty of mistakes Abby but peace with Indra wasn't one of them and I plan on keeping it that way."

"Are you done?" Abby asked.

He ran his hands through his hair, nodded, and waited for her response.

"I get it," she said softly, tucking her hair behind her ears and coming to lean next to him by the operating table, "I get it why you did what you did and I understand and I would still have tried to stop you Marcus. You don't get to think you aren't important around here. I have gone months without a word that you were alive and we find you only it's not you and you don't know who you are so it's like you are still missing. You get your memories back and the first thing you do is volunteer to be punished for a crime that is completely understandable. How could I not do everything in my power to keep you safe? You just got back to us."

Turning his head, he saw her bowed head and clenched hands and took one of them in his, holding it as he shifted to stand in front of her, "I am glad that they didn't take offense Abby, and I am thankful that you were willing to stand up for me but you didn't need to make it seem as if I was an invalid."

"Of course I am going to stand up for you," Abby said with a scoff, "I just question your sanity of running out in front of everyone instead of asking for an audience with Indra."

"It let our own people see that I accept the consequences for my actions."

"Well, they certainly got a show this morning," she quipped. In a softer voice she added, "I know you aren't an invalid Marcus but, the mind heals slower then the body and you need to give yourself some time to process your time with the other grounder tribe."

Abby looked into his eyes at that and saw the shadows of self hate and fear still floating in their depths. Squeezing his hand; the hand he had burned rescuing her, the hand that had caught hers as he walked away to his death, the hand that had held her when they found the drop ship and no Clarke, the hand that had placed a pin in her palm because there had to be a better way, she leaned into his chest and cradled that hand to her heart as if she had found something precious and couldn't let it escape. His heartbeat sped up as she laid against him but he didn't move until she had calmed down and released his hand. Stepping back from him, Abby looked into his eyes with an emotion other then frustration and she nodded as if reaching the conclusion to a problem only she knew.

"Are you alright?" he asked hesitantly, not sure how to react to the strange happenings and trying to ignore the voice of Wick in his head telling him to kiss her.

Abby nodded, her voice strangely light after the tense discussion, "yes Marcus, I'm okay now. We are okay now. I'm…I'm going to finish the paperwork with Jackson and then deliver my lists. You need to go eat something and then have Byrne fill you in on whats been happening."

He heard the hesitation in her voice but didn't comment, choosing to let whatever this moment has morphed into dissolve into familiar territory once more.

"Yes Chancellor Griffin," he said with a smirk.

"Go away Councilor Kane."

Walking into the medical tent while Marcus was walking out, Clarke took the opportunity to tell him what she thought of the marks around her mothers neck.

SLAP.

"Clarke!"


	7. Stop Running

Clarke's hand stung from the force of her slap but she glared at the surprised man in front of her, "that's for the marks on my mom's neck."

"Clarke, you apologize right now!" Abby shouted as she ran to step between them.

"It's alright Abby," Marcus said, rubbing his face to take off some of the pain but not backing away from the glaring blonde in front of him.

"Mom! Are you okay?"

Turning around to face her daughter, Abby crossed her arms and said, "I am just fine. I am wondering why you felt the need to accost Marcus as if I wasn't capable of looking after myself."

Clarke switched from rage to confusion, "he choked you mom! You are just going to forgive him?"

"Maybe I should go," Marcus said awkwardly from behind Abby. Being the subject of a fight between the Griffin women was not a good thing and being there to witness it was even worse.

"It's not up to you who I choose to forgive Clarke," Abby said, " he was also traumatized and medically I should have realized that. I put myself in the situation without accounting for all the variables and he wasn't Marcus then and he is now so no more slapping."

Clarke looked at Marcus, "you remember everything again?"

He nodded, "yes, and I am sorry that your mother was hurt. If I had been myself, that would not have happened."

It was Clarke's turn to nod, "alright, I wasn't aware of the memory upload so I'm good now."

"Are you going to apologize?" Abby asked with a tone of impatience.

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm not sorry yet," Clarke replied and walked back to where Murphy and Bellamy were waiting. The two men fell into step beside her and Abby gripped her hair in annoyance before focusing on Marcus once more.

"How's the cheek?" She asked, walking to where she kept the cool packs and grabbing one from the pile.

"I'm fine Abby," Marcus told her, giving the reddened skin of his cheek a final rub, "Clarke has every right to still be upset considering the fact that you are her mother and she was worried about you. "

Walking back to him, Abby put a hand on his shoulder, "No one who was in that room blames you for what happened. You know that I forgive you right? "

"So you have told me," he said though his eyes reflected doubt.

Abby felt the need to hold him grow stronger but she let the feeling wash over her instead of acting on it. Making Marcus see his own worth was never going to so easy that a hug could make everything better. It was morning and they had jobs to do and she wasn't ready for more emotional upheaval today so giving his shoulder a squeeze of solidarity, she stepped back and gave him access to the door.

"See you at dinner then," was all she said and he walked out of medical and back to work. She sat down at her table and stared unseeing at her pad, wondering just when Marcus Kane had made a home for himself in her heart.

And life continues…

"What the hell happened to you two?" Abby asked as a mud covered Marcus stood in the doorway with a blood and mud covered Bellamy leaning on his arm. Octavia followed close behind them, looking like she was torn between laughing and yelling.

"My brother is an idiot, that's what happened," Octavia answered with a snort.

Bellamy grinned at her through a split lip and bloody nose, "Kane beat me up."

Giving Bellamy a shake, Marcus frowned, "you asked for it Blake so don't go blaming me for your desperate lack of hand to hand combat training."

"Well then jokes on you 'cause I was trained in the guard," Bellamy quipped back to him.

"I didn't train you Blake," Marcus shot back, "so again, not my fault."

Abby sighed and brought the bleeding man over to her table, making Bellamy sit on the table while Marcus leaned against the wall in exhaustion. He looked dead tired but unharmed so Abby made sure he wasn't going to fall over before focusing all her attention on Bellamy. Octavia stood by her brother, poking one of the bruises on his arm just to see him jump. Slapping her hand away, Bellamy pulled on her braid and then tried to be serious as Abby brought over a tray with cleaning supplies and some bandages. He was in a good mood for someone who just got beaten into the dirt.

She handed the tray to Octavia saying , "just keep it steady so the alcohol doesn't spill."

"Why were you trying to beat on each other in the first place?" Abby asked, wiping the blood from Bellamy's face so she could take a look at the damage to his nose.

"I wanted my people to understand that they needed the training while also deciding whether or not Kane could provide it for us," Bellamy said, his voice muffled by Abby's cleaning, "I figured the best way to accomplish both those things was to have a simulated fight. I didn't expect to lose so spectacularly that's for sure."

"You should have guessed from how much Wick was laughing at your idea," Octavia said, jostling the tray slightly and gaining a glare from Abby, "at least it worked even if you look like hell."

Marcus smiled and patted the younger man's arm, "hey, you held your own for the most part but your foot work was all over the place. All I did was use your lack of balance against you. I didn't know you'd try to break your fall with your face."

Abby shook her head, muttering something that sounded suspiciously like 'boys' under her breath and took a final examination of Bellamy's face.

"Well, your nose isn't broken so that's good news," she told them, "and I don't think you need any stitches for that cut but lets get a bandage over it and for goodness sake Marcus, sit down before you fall down."

He must have been more tired then she thought because he did as she told him without any resistance. Octavia handed her a strips of adhesive to keep the bandage secure and Abby smiled at the younger woman's obvious concern over her brother even if she tried to hide it behind teasing. Having her there also seemed to keep Bellamy in check so Abby was grateful for her presence. Giving the bandage a final press to keep it in place on Bellamy's cheek, Abby declared him fit to return to his camp.

"Go on, I am sure you want to gloat about how well your plan worked," Abby told him.

Octavia smirked and set the tray down on the table, "lets hope people try not to follow your glorious example."

Abby nodded in agreement, "I'm not going to tolerate having a flood of patients once the training actually starts."

Bellamy sobered at the idea of his people hurt and nodded, "I'll see to it that only the serious injuries come here and reinforce the need to be careful."

"Lincoln and Clarke can take care of minor things anyway," Octavia added, her eyes brightening at the mention of her lovers name, causing Bellamy to push her towards the door.

"They will both probably tell them to just suck it up,"Bellamy retorted, "its not like I would have died from what Kane did to me."

"Alright you guys" Abby said with a smile, "get out of my tent and let Clarke know that if she needs more supplies, I will help with production."

"Thank you Ms. Griffin," he answered, "for wanting to help and fixing me up."

"You're a good guy Bellamy, if a bit stubborn," Abby said with a soft pat to his arm.

"Coming from a Griffin woman that is high praise indeed!" He told her, cheeky grin back in place and Octavia swatted his arm before they walked out the door.

The siblings were greeted by a worried looking Clarke and watching her daughter fuss over the injured man, Abby wondered how long it would take for those two to wind up sharing a tent. Deciding that it was none of her business, Abby walked over to the suspiciously silent Marcus and found him asleep in her chair. She sighed and draped a blanket over his frame, taking time to cover every part of him and pillow his head against the chairs metallic frame. He looked younger while he was sleeping but he still seemed larger then life, as if her medical room grew smaller with him in it. Moving a strand of hair out of his face, Abby wondered if he knew how often she wanted to touch his hair or smooth the worry line between his eyes. She knew she wanted him, knew she would be lucky to have him want her in return but the fear was a powerful force. If he didn't feel the same way, if he had to let her down gently, she didn't know if they would ever get back to friends again and it had taken them so long to get to this point of easy camaraderie. Giving her head a shake to dismiss her wandering thoughts, she went back to cleaning her surgical instruments and humming under her breath to keep it from being too quiet.

When the alarm sounded, it shocked Abby right out of her seat and she bolted for the door to see if anyone was running in the direction of medical. She couldn't see many people about and everyone seemed to be heading for their own tents. Slamming the door shut, Abby made sure everything was sealed tight and then watched from the window as yellow fog billowed in. She had been wondering when Mount Weather would get back on their feet.

"I guess they finally recovered from the assault," Marcus said and Abby yelped a little in surprise. Turning around she saw him a few feet behind her with the blanket in his arms and his hair mussed from sleeping.

"I'm sorry," he said instantly, "I didn't meant to scare you."

Giving him a reassuring smile, Abby said, "No, it's alright. I thought you were sleeping is all."

"That alarm would wake the dead," he said with a smile and then walked to where she was standing and tugged the window covering down.

Abby walked back to her little table in the back, telling her brain to stop focusing on how adorable he looked after just waking up, "Jackson keeps a stash of food in here in case we are monitoring a patient. Are you hungry?"

"Yeah, I could eat," he said and she grabbed the bag of mixed nuts, dried berries, and jerky from under the lower cabinets as well as a water bottle. Passing him the bag, she looked around for something to occupy her hands and tried to figure out why she was so nervous. She couldn't help thinking about her earlier thoughts and how her heart raced every time Marcus looked at her. Normally she would distract herself with work or convince herself that they didn't have time for nonsense. The fog had left them on their own though with no distractions till it passed and Marcus' eyes were following her around the space as if he was trying to figure something out.

"Come on," Marcus said, holding out his hand, "we can at least wait in relative comfort till the fog passes."

She took his hand, hoping it wasn't too sweaty and he couldn't read the nervous energy radiating off of her. Leading her down to the infirmary which had thankfully not been put to use yet, he pushed a couple of the mattresses onto the floor and lowered himself down. Patting the space next to him, Marcus watched her brow furrow in confusion and indecision before taking the offered seat.

A voice that sounded suspiciously like Wick echoed in his head as he watched her settle next to him and offer him the water bottle.

Kiss her man.

Taking the bottle from her, Marcus swallowed a few mouthfuls and tried not to think about her lips and how they felt and what kissing her could mean for them if he was wrong.

Just freaking kiss her already.

Watching him drink water shouldn't affect her this way but her brain was focused on the way his throat moved with each swallow and how badly she wanted to taste his skin. When he handed the bottle back and their hands touched in the exchange, every part of her lit up and she couldn't hold back her shiver.

"Are you cold?" He asked, stripping his jacket off and offering it her.

Shaking her head, Abby got her voice under control and said, "no, not cold, just worried about the camp. Do you think everyone is alright?" The alarm wasn't too far ahead of the fog this time."

"We will see when it lifts," he answered, bumping her shoulder with his own, "and we can figure out which building gets upgraded next. I am thinking Raven and Wick deserve a new workbench since their's is being held together with tied rags as this point."

Her mind was racing towards recklessness as he talked and something inside of Abby snapped open. If she didn't take the chance to kiss him and tell him how much he meant to her, she would always wonder if she had missed out on a lifetime of happiness. Whether he felt the same way or not, she wasn't going to waste another minute losing to her own fear.

When she didn't answer his suggestion, Marcus turned to see Abby sitting much closer then before and he watched in what felt like slow motion as she placed a quick but firm kiss on his lips. She backed away instantly and he stared in shock. The silence stretched between them as Abby stared into Marcus' eyes with fear filling their dark depths. Taking control of his whirling thoughts, Marcus placed his hand on the side of her face and returned the kiss, pressing his lips to hers with gentle slowness. It was what Abby needed to stuff the fear back inside and give in to her own wants. Soft lips crushing together, hands tangling in hair, and tongues stroking tenderly, Abby reveled in each new action and moans of pleasure filled the room as she melted into her soldier. He twisted his hands in her hair like the silky strands were keeping him grounded in the moment and if he let go, he would float away. Wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling herself into his lap, she kissed her way down his face and neck till she could nibble at his collarbones. His groan was enough to tell her that he was enjoying her attentions. When she finally pulled back to look in his eyes again, they were both out of breath and Marcus swallowed hard, trying to gather some sort of proper thought process.

"Abby," he growled at last in a voice so rough that she shuddered, "are you sure?"

Her own voice was almost as rough, her body flushing with hormones, "I am completely sure and I should have told you sooner but you were hurt and then Indra and–"

"Shh," he pressed a finger to her lips then replaced it with his mouth, kissing away her panic and soothing her fears before speaking again, "it's alright, it's alright my darling."

"Am I yours?" she asked, her hands already making their way back into his hair to scrape her nails against his scalp and she felt like touching him for the rest of her life would never make up for all the times she held back.

"Only if you want to be," he answered, trying to focus on speaking instead of the sensation of her fingernails against his skin, "but you should know I am already yours."

"When?" she asked, her eyes searching out his and smiling at the adoration shining in their warm depths, "when were you mine?"

Marcus pulled her hands out of his hair and held them in his, "when you told Jake that if he kept pulling your hair, you would pull all his teeth out."

"What?" Abby said, looking up at him in shock, "we were children!"

"Yeah, and I remember the look of horror on his face and I remember going home and telling my mother that I was going to marry that Walter girl."

Abby laughed and kissed his knuckles, "you never said anything though."

"Yeah, well my mother wasn't very supportive of my decision. It wasn't too hard to convince me that you were out of my league," Marcus said softly, trying not to think back to the past and his own failings that should have put her out of his reach forever. The idea that she was here, sitting in his lap and stroking her fingers across the rough skin of his hands, felt like dreaming.

Frowning at his confession, Abby placed his arms around her waist and brought their foreheads together, "well you are mine now and I am not letting you go."

Marcus' smile was Abby's favorite thing about earth. He didn't speak but rubbed circles on her back and then tilted his head to kiss her again. Placing her hands on either side of his face, Abby deepened the kiss and elicited groans from his throat that echoed in her chest. She was straddling his lap, the bulge of his erection pressing firmly against her sex and she marveled at how in control he still seemed. Wiggling her hips, Abby giggled at the glare Marcus threw at her and he retaliated by rolling them over and pinning her to the mats.

"Chancellor, are you trying to take advantage of me?" He asked with a look of feigned shock.

"Absolutely," Abby answered and brought his head down until her lips were at his ear, "and you wouldn't want to disappoint me right councilor?"

He was nipping his teeth along the side of her throat when a sound at the door broke the spell.

"Ms. Griffin?"

Abby looked up to see Octavia Blake and Lincoln looking down at them and while Lincoln's face said amusement, Octavia looked disturbed.

"Are you kidding me?" The young woman said before throwing up her hands and groaning.

"Is the fog gone?" Abby asked, trying to ignore the flames burning in her cheeks and pushing Marcus up so that she could sit on her own. He held out the water bottle to her and she took a few swallows, trying to calm her heart.

"The fog is gone and the mountain men have left a surprise on our doorstep," Lincoln told them.

"I am guessing it isn't a peace offering," Marcus said, standing at last and helping Abby to her feet while giving her a smile. He knew that she was embarrassed about being found making out like teenagers but he couldn't bring himself to care. They could pick up where they left off later tonight as soon as they took care of whatever the mountain men had left behind.

"No shit," Octavia said from the back, "but they are back to their old tricks so we need Abby in medical as soon as you two are finished making out in here. Everyone is pretty freaked."

"Octavia," Abby said, warning in her voice but Lincoln's laugh stopped whatever she was going to say.

"She is just upset because we were in separate places when the fog came," the large man said with a little bump to his lover's arm, "we've been alerting people that the fog is gone and I guess everyone took advantage of the downtime to reconnect."

"Three different couples, all in various states of undress while I had to listen to Raven and Wick argue about which wires are best suited to what kind of electrical current!"

Marcus laughed, "well lets go take a look in medical and sort this out quickly then."

"Hey, I am just glad I get to tell Raven that Wick was right about you two," Octavia told them, "worth it to see her brain go sideways."

"Actually," Abby said with a glance as Marcus, "I would appreciate it if you could keep quiet about us. It's all very new and I think we need some time before the whole camp knows."

Looking at Marcus, Octavia saw him nod his agreement and she sighed, "fine but when Raven finds out, I want to be there to watch her brain come out of her ears."

"Deal."

Lincoln gave both Marcus and Abby a pat on the shoulder before placing his arm around Octavia and pulling her out of the room.

"Are you alright with keeping it quiet for now?" Abby asked, caution coloring her voice.

Pulling her close, Marcus kissed her firmly, putting all his desire and want into the way his lips moved with hers before whispering, "I am with you Abby and I will enjoy having you all to myself for at least a little while."

"I was thinking the same thing," Abby answered, giving him a smile that lit up his heart.

They walked into medical to see Jackson, Carter, and Byrne standing around someone on the operating table. With a sense of foreboding, Abby walked and looked down at the body laying unconscious on her table. He was covered in scars, missing half and ear, and caked in blood and grime but Abby's body froze in recognition.

"Thelonious?"


	8. Touble with Running

There were so many people in the medical space that she couldn't sort out their voices but Abby stared in disbelief at the man she thought she would never see again. He was supposed to be floating in space, using up the last of the Arks' air supply and then seeing his son.

"How the hell did he get to earth?" Marcus asked the room.

No one had an answer, not that he expected one. Marcus saw the strange scars on his friend and a sinking feeling came over him. He had seen these kind of markings before when he was grabbing the kids from Mount Weather. If Jaha was a reaper, then he didn't know if they would be able to save him.

"I-I need to examine him," Abby said though her soft voice barely carried over the crowded area.

Bringing her over to Thelonious, Marcus shooed some of the people back so she could do her job. Abby checked Thelonious over and concluded that he was dehydrated, malnourished, and several of his injuries were infected. He was in rough shape but she didn't think he was in any danger of dying.

"I will have to monitor him closely and get these wounds clean. I am sure he has some sort of drug in his system so I'm going to do some blood work and see what jumps at me."

Marcus patted her arm awkwardly, "I'll set up some guards in case he wakes up. If he is anything like the men I have fought before, it would be better for everyone-"

The sound of a horn interrupted him mid sentence and he gave a quick glance to Abby before racing for the gate, followed by Byrne and Carter. Bellamy and Lincoln were already at the gate, picking off some of the attackers, but Marcus knew that the camp was horribly outnumbered. Reapers were pouring out of the woods and racing towards the camp, screaming and waving their weapons. More guards were running to the front with weapons, including the kids from Camp 100, and Byrne came up behind Marcus, handing him his gun.

"Alright everyone, fire at will but make every bullet count! We can't let them breach the gate!" Marcus yelled to his men and then began firing. On either side of him, stood Byrne and Carter with their weapons of choice, ready to die beside him if it came to that to protect this camp. His mind drifted to Abby as he looked down his scope and sought out a target. No matter what, he wouldn't let them reach the gate. He had to keep his people safe and he had to keep Abby safe. The reapers were easy targets but he knew they had enough bodies to make it to the fence and then the real fighting would begin.

Abby knew they were under attack from the sound of the horn and she could do nothing more then nod to Marcus before he raced to defend their camp. Grabbing Jackson, she pushed the emergency medical kit into his hands and he also raced out to help, leaving her alone with Thelonious. She took a blanket from the supply trunk and draped it across his legs.

Here I am again Thelonious, fighting for you life. Please don't give up.

Grabbing onto the side of the bed, she washed the large cuts along his arms and the deep puncture wounds along his left side. The steady beat of his heart gave Abby hope that he would survive the physical damage though what his mind would be like when he woke up was another story. They were being attacked by men who looked very much like Thelonious did now. If he had been given the same drugs, there was a chance she would heal his body but lose him anyway.

Stop thinking and work, she told herself and brought her concentration back to what she could do. Her med tent would be full soon enough of more people in need of her services so she cleaned out Thelonious' wounds and tried not to listen to the echo of gun shots. She was so focused on Thelonius that the men sneaking into her tent went unnoticed until it was too late.

When the reapers hit the fence at last, their numbers were significantly lower then Marcus had anticipated. Looking past Byrne, he saw Octavia and Bellamy outside the gates and fighting back to back with fierce grins on their faces. They had slipped through the gate with Lincoln and the Murphy boy and were hacking their way through the crowd of mad men while Clarke, Finn and Jasper covered with their rifles. His smile was small but proud to see all of their training put to use and they now worked as a true unit. His moment was cut short by a reaper screaming in front of him and Marcus bashed the butt of his gun against the disfigured man's skull. Sending out a spray of bullets, Marcus focused on defending his own portion of the fence and covering Carter and Byrne.

Once the four fighters beyond the reached their goal of the tree line, the rest of the horde didn't have a chance. With the guns and arrows in front and the whirling swords behind, the reapers broke off and ran for the woods. Octavia was all for chasing them down but Lincoln held her back. They had wounded to care for and bodies to burn. Lincoln was worried about the attack and how fast it had happened after the former Arker had shown up. It all pointed to the Mountain Men but they wouldn't have just thrown reapers at the camp and hoped. There was something larger happening, he was sure of it.

"We will need to get the wounded to medical first and then come back to gather the dead," Marcus told Carter and Byrne.

Carter headed to the nearest group of wounded while Byrne frowned at the woods, "there is something not right about this attack sir."

"What do you mean?"

"There didn't seem to be any purpose and they lost many people but gained nothing," the tall woman said, "why would they risk open attack? Why did they deploy the fog but then have it dissipate so quickly? It doesn't make sense."

Marcus frowned as he considered the woman's words. It did all seem so pointless and even giving Jaha to them wounded and crazed didn't seem like much of a plan. There had to be a bigger picture but he still couldn't see what it was.

"I will think about it Byrne," he told her, "but we have wounded to worry about and bodies to dispose of. Once that is taken care of, we can think about what the Mountain Men are up to."

Byrne nodded, "yes sir."

Jackson was wandering around with his medkit, patching wounds and directing people to help carry some of the incapacitated into medical. Marcus gave the younger man a nod of gratitude. Stretchers were being crafted out of stretched skins and tree branches and Marcus threw his gun over his shoulder and went to help carry the wounded. He grabbed one of the last stretchers, the other end grabbed by Jackson, and they made their way to medical with the walking wounded. Most of the others were already in the tent, being fussed over by Abby, Marcus surmised and couldn't help the smile that drifted over his lips at the thought of her. She was a force of nature against the god of death himself and he loved her for it.

Jackson set the his side of the stretcher down, "hold on, his bandage slipped."

Marcus put his end down, "are you sure we shouldn't just get him into medical and then deal with it?"

His question was never answered as a blast of fire and shrapnel exploded in front of him and he flew back, crashing into a pile of firewood. He groaned and rolled to his feet with his ears ringing. Looking up, Marcus paled and tried to move forward even as the world tipped and rocked beneath him. Where medical used to stand, was a crater of burning wood, shredded metal, and dead bodies. Byrne grabbed his side and kept him upright as he stared at the damage but his mind couldn't process what had happened.

"Abby," was all he said before sinking to his knees.

Her hands were tied behind her back and a bag pulled over her head. The two men on either side of her pushed and pulled her in any direction they wanted and Abby stumbled over the unfamiliar territory. She hadn't made a sound since the leader of the small company had thrust his fist into her stomach. She followed along as best she could, trying to keep calm and tell herself that if they wanted her dead, there was nothing stopping them. Abby couldn't tell how long they had walked but her legs were stiff and sore by the time shew as pushed to a stop.

"Sit."

The voice was rough and sharp and even though she couldn't see anything, Abby sat down on the ground, grateful for the rest. Her cramped hands ached from being tied together, sweat dripped down her forehead from the heat inside the hood, and her mouth was dry from lack of water but Abby kept her silence and tried to rest as best she could. They picked up and started moving after a short ten minute rest. Abby let herself be pulled to her feet and the stumbling continued.

The air was cooler when they stopped again and Abby was sure that darkness had fallen on the forest. Her captors were no longer being quiet and she figured they had reached the intended destination. Her theory was proven correct when the hood came off and she stepped back in horror. She stood at a door into Mount Weather with three guards,


	9. Running On Empty

His head felt heavy and filled with cotton. There was a taste of ash and blood in his mouth. Looking out over the fire pit, Marcus felt the heavy burden of death settle on his shoulders and turned away to survey the clean up crews. The medical tent was demolished. According to the two people who had survived the explosion, Jaha's stomach had started glowing and they both ran for cover as their former leader exploded. Marcus hadn't handled the news of both Abby and Thelonious being dead very well. Byrne took charge of the clean up and disposal as Marcus stared at the wreckage in grief. They had found various pieces of Thelonious all over the wreckage but Abby's body had still not been recovered and he dreaded the hour when she was uncovered and he had to say goodbye.

Seeing Clarke curled in on her self next to the food tent, Marcus thought about moving next to her and started to stand when he saw Octavia and Lincoln come to sit on either side of the distraught woman. He wouldn't know what to say to her anyway, so he left her to her friends.

"Sir, we are almost done here, did you want to get cleaned up?"

He looked over at Byrne and nodded, not trusting himself to speak. If he opened his mouth, he might never stop screaming and the camp needed him to keep his head after this catastrophe. Motioning for Bryne to lead the way, Marcus followed her into the ruins of the station.

Jackson was curled in the corner, trying to hold back tears and scrub blood off his hands with a tattered sponge. His work with the wounded hadn't lasted long as most of them had died in the explosion. Marcus didn't say anything but sat down next to Jackson and let the younger man collapse on him, the tears finally winning. Holding Jackson, Marcus nodded at Byrne and she left the men to their grief.

Walking outside, Byrne waved Carter over, "have you found any more dead?"

"No, we haven't," he reported, "I would like to give Marcus and Clarke hope that Abby was not in the tent when it exploded. Two other people are missing from Camp 100. I think perhaps they were taken while we were distracted with the reapers."

"Let's wait until the entire tent has been cleaned and searched. I don't want to give them hope only to have it shattered if her body does turn up."

"Yes ma'am."

They searched the rubble, setting aside anything they could re-purpose. The more they cleaned, the more hope Byrne had that Abby was not among the dead. She was still hesitant to tell Marcus until they had definitive proof and even then, she knew he would want to mount a rescue as soon as possible. She wasn't sure if the camp could handle anything more strenuous then food gathering at the moment.

Marcus took his shower in record time and waited for Jackson to finish cleaning up, helping the distraught man get dressed and out the door. It centered him to help someone and focus on their needs instead of giving into the despair clutched around his heart. He watched Carter and Byrne sort through the wreckage as he led Jackson towards the mess hall. Something was different and Carter seemed excited about something. After getting the younger man busy with food, Marcus went over to the two large blonds were arguing.

"If thats true then we have to be careful. We can't afford to lose more of our people."

"If what's true?" He asked.

Carter waited for a nod from Byrne before he spoke, "Abby isn't in the wreckage. Raven and a boy named Monty are also unaccounted for. It is my best guess that the three of them were snatched while we were busy defending the front gate. If we can find a place where a small group may have been able to sneak in, we might find a clue as to where they were taken."

Marcus stared at the big man, "Abby's not dead?"

Byrne sighed, "I think Carter is right. Everybody, alive or dead, has been accounted for except those three people and the wreckage has been fully searched."

She watched hope bleed into Marcus' eyes and knew there was no way this man was just friends with Abby. Byrne smiled while Marcus processed and waited for her instructions.

"Search the fence, see if we can find where they slipped in," Marcus ordered.

Byrne waved over a few of the guards and relayed the order as Marcus moved to the area behind the now demolished medical tent. He would search until he found where the kidnappers entered and then track them down and get Abby back. He wouldn't let anyone get in his way.

Halfway through his search, Clarke came up to him and handed him a bottle of water.

"Have you found anything yet?" She asked. He could hear the barely controlled rage in her voice.

Bryne let Clarke know that her mother was missing, not dead, and the blond woman had exploded in a cacophony of swearing that had Bellamy running to check on her. She talked to her camp and then joined the search of the perimeter.

"I think they came through one of the folded panels by the dividing line between the two camps," he answered, taking a sip of water and handing the bottle back.

Clarke nodded and slipped the bottle into the pack across her back. She joined his search for the weak point in the fence and Marcus had guessed right about the folded panels. A couple tufts of fur were caught on the rough metal sheets and Clarke spotted a piece of red fabric that could have only come from Raven's jacket. Mixed in the mud and dirt around the hole, was a small pin, metallic and shining and Marcus picked it up. The pin was unclasped and still had the backing on it.

You wonderful woman, Marcus thought, you left us a clue.

He pressed it into Clarke's hand and smiled wide. His heart was pounding in his chest but he felt like he could fly away. Abby wasn't dead, she was out there somewhere and whoever had her would be sorry for their actions.

"Your mother is alive Clarke, and we are going to get her back," he said, hope filling his words with purpose.

Clarke looked at him and nodded, her eyes shining with unshed tears, "I am coming with you."

"I know," he answered, "I wouldn't ask you to stay behind."

Clarke looked down, overcome with the compassion coloring Marcus' voice. She had been ready to fight him about this but she wasn't prepared for his understanding. With a pat on her shoulder, Marcus gave her a small smile.

"Let me go grab a pack and we will head out."

"we're coming too," a voice said behind them.

Jasper, Bellamy and Jackson were standing with Wick and Lincoln, packs over their shoulders and willfulness in their eyes. Marcus sighed and shook his head.

"Jackson, I am sorry but you are needed here to tend to the wounded," Marcus told the young doctor, "you don't have any fighting skills and I can't risk your life. Abby would never forgive me."

Jackson deflated at Marcus' words but nodded his understanding.

"Wick, did you let Sinclair know you were leaving so he could find someone else to take over your projects? That water filtration system is still top priority."

Wick gave him a thumbs up and tightened the straps on his pack, "You aren't the only one with someone you care about missing."

"We want our people back as much as you do Kane," Bellamy said.

Jackson took his pack off, "at least take some of the first aid equipment with you. You don't know what kind of shape they are going to be in and Abby might..."

Taking the supplies, Marcus placed both hands on Jackson's shoulders and made the younger man look at him, "Jackson, Abby is smart. She won't fight until she is sure she can win. You'll see, we will need the supplies more than she will."

"Please find her Marcus," Jackson said, his voice catching, "she won't give up if you don't."

Marcus bowed his head in acknowledgment, "stay safe, tend to our wounded, and we will bring them all home."

Clarke stared at Marcus with astonishment as he talked and a suspicious feeling came over her.

Mom and Marcus are more then just friends, she thought and tried to see if the thought of them together made her angry. Looking over at Bellamy talking with Marcus, she decided that he fit in their strange little family. They had all done things that didn't bear repeating but now they worked together and survived on earth as a unit.

Maybe it's time to reintegrate and combine the camps.

It was a stray thought, a small thread of community out of place in her other thoughts of vengeance for the ones who took her mother but a powerful one and it grew roots as the little group of rescuers left the camp and headed into the woods.

Abby's eyes hurt from the bright light and her mouth felt full of cotton from the lack of water. Raven banged her hand against the door, screaming and yelling till she fell asleep with tear tracks down her face. Curling into a ball as soon as the mountain men left them in the cell, Monty turned catatonic and nothing Abby said would bring him out of it.

Her heart broke for the kids and she settled between them, determined to keep them safe. Time seemed to pass like syrup, and Abby felt her eyelids grow heavy from the lack of activity. Shaking her head, she snapped herself awake and pressed a palm into her eyes. She didn't want to be caught sleeping if the mountain men came for them. Raven ended up curled around her left leg while Monty leaned against her shoulder and Abby stared at the door in front of her, willing someone to walk through and let them know what was going on.

"We are coming in!"

The loud booming voice startled Raven awake and the mechanic rose to her feet with murder in her eyes. Abby took hold of her arm and pulled her back down.

"We can't fight them right now Raven," Abby said, "not while Monty is like this."

Raven's eyes flashed but she didn't try to stand again. She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the door as if she could melt it with the power of her anger.

A tall silver haired man entered the room, followed by a dark haired man who sneered at the sight of them sitting on the opposite side of the room.

"Hello, welcome to Mount Weather," the older man said and Abby let out a loud burst of laughter.

"I do feel so welcome," Abby said with disgust coating her voice, "dragging us from our home, putting a bag over our heads, being traded for explosives, what a welcome."

Giving the younger man a look of distaste, he continued, "my name is Dante' Wallace and the rough treatment you received from my son, while unfortunate, was necessary. We knew you wouldn't come willingly and I did need to speak with you."

Looking to her left and right, Abby clutched at Raven and Monty's hands, "and what of them? You have something important to talk about with them as well?"

"That one saw the savages enter you camp," the younger man said, pointing at Raven, "they were told to bring anyone who noticed them."

"I would have screamed before they caught me but Monty came around the corner and passed out. I had to help him and they gagged me," Raven told Abby before throwing a look of hatred to Dante' and his son.

"Cage, wait outside," Dante' said, "your presence offends me at the moment."

The younger man glared at his father before doing as he was told. Abby couldn't help her shudder as Dante' turned his full attention on her.

"We don't have much time," Dante' said, "I know your people will eventually figure out my sons base subterfuge and I need to reach an agreement with you before more blood is shed."

She shifted on the floor and Raven edged closer as Abby said, "we are tired, hungry, and sore from sitting in here for hours. If you want anything resembling civility, then let me take care of my people."

Dante' nodded and gestured to the door, "let's go somewhere a little more comfortable and get you and your young charges some food."

It took Raven and Abby holding Monty between them to get him out of the room but they supported the traumatized boy down the hall and into what looked like a little sitting room with chairs and tables and curtains hanging on cement walls.

"Welcome to our prison," Dante' said from the door as he waited for them to enter, "I will send someone for food and water while you get comfortable."

Abby watched him talking into a radio of some sort and decided to ignore him in favor of taking care of Monty. His power play could wait once her people were safe. The young man still wouldn't respond to her prodding so she grabbed a blanket from across the room and draped it over his frame. Raven too the seat next to him and Abby rewarded her with a smile. Knowing that Raven would watch over Monty gave her freedom to concentrate on Dante' and what he wanted.

Raven and Monty settled into their respective chairs and Abby stood between them, curiosity warring with caution as she watched Dante' wave in a young woman carrying a tray of food and water.

"Please Ms. Griffin," Dante' said with a wave of his hand, "Won't you sit down and let us discuss this like civilized people?"

"Civilized people don't resort to kidnapping," Abby snapped back, annoyed that he knew her name though she hadn't given it. It meant spies in her camp or Thelonious being tortured.

Dante' merely stared at her till Abby knew he wouldn't start talking until she sat down and pretended this was anything less than forced cooperation. Taking a seat, Abby held out a glass of water to Dante'.

"Drink it, from this glass and then I will talk to you."

He smiled as if her caution was something funny but did as she asked. Once he took a gulp from the glass, Abby passed it to Raven and let the girl drink her fill. Monty wouldn't drink but Raven wetted his lips with the liquid before handing it back to Abby. Dante' watched the exchange with approval.

"You care for your people Ms. Griffin," he began, "It is what makes us the same and why I think you will listen to what I have to say."

It was Abby's turn to stare until Dante' continued, his shifting frame the only give away to his discomfort at her stare. After so many years on the the Ark Council, Abby knew the power of her disapproving eyes.

You are the leader of your people, "Dante' said, redundant in his annoyance, "so I think it will not be difficult to convince them that we are willing to call a cease fire if you and your own help us out of this tomb."

Monty made a keening noise in the back of his throat and Raven grabbed his hand to comfort him. Abby listened to the young mechanics soft voice tell Monty that no one was going to hurt him.

"How would we be helping you?" She asked, her voice clear and strong even if sitting in front of this man made her want to shower.

"You have two options," Dante' told her, his eyes cold, "You can donate your bone marrow willingly to my people so that they can walk in the sun again, or we will take it by force and leave bodies in our wake. I would very much like you to choose the first option as it lets everyone choose life but I will not keep my people prisoner anymore."


	10. Forgetting to Run

The quiet of the woods surrounded Marcus with an ominous threat, like enemies could be hiding around any corner, ready to spring a trap or drop a cage. His paranoia wouldn't have been questioned given his experiences but out here, looking for Abby, he couldn't afford to let his trauma get in the way of finding her. Lincoln pushed on ahead of the group to make sure they were following the right tracks while Bellamy and Wick kept watch on the tree tops for enemies and Clarke and Marcus scanned the forest ready for anything. Trees used to be a sanctuary for Marcus and now he scanned every branch for possible danger. Being so on edge, the sounds of the forest around him felt sinister.

I need to get a grip if we have any chance of resucing Abby. If she were here, I would be able to handle this but I don't know what she is going through and what she might have to endure before we get to her.

"Hold!"

Marcus jumped as Lincoln called out and he raced ahead to see what the younger man needed. Clarke frowned at the tense nature of their leader but kept her thoughts to herself.

"What is it Lincoln?" Marcus asked, his breath catching in his throat.

Lincoln pointed to the tall mountain ahead of them, "We are headed straight for Mount Weather but our people weren't taken by mountain men. If I had to guess, I'd say that a tribe of grounders kidnapped Abby, Raven, and Monty and traded them to the mountain men."

Looking out at the formidable mountain, Marcus motioned the others forward and had Lincoln relate his news to them while he tried to shake the feeling of dread creeping up his spine.

Clarke gasped and clutched at Bellamy, "We can't get in there. It's too well guarded and they could send the fog if we even seemed like a threat."

"We will just have to think of a way to not look like a threat," Bellamy told her, trying to calm her down.

As much as the young Griffin argued with her mom, there was no debate that the two women loved each other fiercely and Marcus resolved again to push through his anxiety and get Abby home safe.

"We need a disguise."

Everyone looked at Wick.

"What?"

Two hours later, Lincoln weaved his way back through the woods carrying an armful of grounder gear and swords as well as an already well-armed Octavia.

Shaking his head, Marcus said, "Thank you for joining us Miss Blake."

"I would have come sooner if someone hadn't decided to sneak off behind my back."

Lincoln looked at Bellamy and shrugged, "I told you it wouldn't work."

With a punch to her brother's arm, a peck to Lincoln's cheek, and a wave to Wick, the young woman turned to sorting through the pile of clothes with Clarke.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Marcus asked Wick and Lincoln as he dragged them away from the others.

Wick shrugged, "We know they trade with grounders so the logical thing would be to assume so long as we bring something they want, we can catch them with their guard down."

"I agree," Lincoln said, "It is also the only thing that has a shot at working quickly."

The direct answer left Marcus nodding in resigned agreement, "I have one change to the plan. I will be the one you are delivering, not Bellamy."

"He's not going to like that."

"I don't care," Marcus said, "Like Abby, I am a recognized leader among the sky people and if anyone is going to be put in irons, it should be someone who is still a little rusty with a sword."

Wick laughed, "I'd lead with that argument."

As expected, Bellamy argued about Marcus taking the risk but Octavia pulled him aside and whispered something in his ear to calm him down. The siblings walked back to the group and Bellamy put the fashioned manacles into Marcus' hands.

"They have a quick release button on the underside of the left vice," the older Blake said, "once they have the door open, you can free yourself and make sure the door stays open. They should have guns and taking one of them by surprise should be…"

Marcus waited with a small smile on his face and Bellamy trailed off as he realized that the older man would already know all of this.

Clapping him on the back, Marcus said, "Thanks Bellamy, I'll take your advice."

Bellamy blushed and walked back over to where his sister and Clarke were putting the finishing touches on their makeup. Quickly rubbing black soot and oil around his face, Bellamy exchanged a worried glance with Clarke.

Keeping her voice quiet, Clarke whispered, "is he going to be okay once we put those things on?"

Bellamy shrugged, "He hasn't seemed worried about it."

"Just because a man stays quiet, it doesn't mean there isn't a problem."

Octavia snorted, "Understatement of the century."

"He wants to rescue our people as badly as you do Clarke," Bellamy said, feeling the urge to stick up for the stern man, "He wouldn't jeopardize the mission."

Giving her own shrug to the matter, Octavia stated, "If he starts freaking out, one of us can hit him on the head."

Clarke gave a small laugh and stood, "We need to go before it gets so dark the Mountain Men shoot us on principle."

Joining the older group, Bellamy helped Marcus slip the manacles on his wrists and though the man shivered for a few moments, he didn't complain. Bellamy and Lincoln stood on either side of him while the rest of the party spread out like a proper grounder tracking unit.

They weren't completely surprised by the advancing grounder war party; Bellamy spotted the branches moving ahead and the disguised group stopped to circle around their "captive."

Breaking through the leaves and branches, a group of six grounder men approached with weapons drawn and Bellamy cursed under his breath. He knew they didn't have time for this but the warriors in front of him looked ready for a fight.

Lincoln stepped forward to greet the battle party, speaking in Trigedasleng while the rest of them shifted their weight around and tried to look intimidating. Clarke glared at the strange men, her mind focused on what everyone was saying and trying not to think about the horrors her mother was facing. Even Wick knew enough to keep his mouth shut and not give them away.

NO.

NO.

Marcus threw himself on the ground and tried to hide his face from the men currently talking with Lincoln. He would remember those voices for the rest of his life; even his dreams wouldn't give him a rest from the gruff taunting sound of those voices. If they recognized him it would be all over and a fight with this group would be bloody. He found himself trembling with fear and took deep breaths to calm his panicking brain.

"And who do you have here?"

The sentence in English threw the group off and Lincoln froze as the leader of the strange grounders walked up to the circling sky people and pushed them aside. Keeping his face in the dirt, Marcus held himself still with only his shallow breaths giving any clue that he was cracking. Too quick for anyone to move, the bulky man kicked Marcus over and started laughing.

"You found my pet!"

No one moved. Clarke stared in confusion while Marcus struggled to reach the release latch on his cuffs and the man standing before him kept laughing.

Move Marcus, move, don't die.

An arrow through the laughing man's throat cut off the awful sound and he collapsed on top of Marcus as the clearing exploded into combat around him. The surprise bolt from Octavia's crossbow and the two guns Bellamy had strapped to his waist gave the sky people a clear upper hand and soon the men were dead in a circle around their fallen leader while Marcus struggled to get out from under the dead man's weight. With Lincoln and Wick's help, he stood and released the manacles from around his wrists. Looking at the group of dead grounders around him, Marcus turned around and threw up into the bushes behind him.

No one spoke while he heaved what little food he'd consumed today onto the soil. Once he finished, a small hand pushed a strip of wet cloth in front of him and Marcus wiped his mouth and face down. Looking up, he found Clarke's blue eyes staring at him with fierce determination.

"They were the people who captured you right?" She asked, as straightforward as her parents.

He nodded, "Yes, the whole village did their part but they…he…"

"You don't have to tell me," Clarke said, laying a hand on his arm, "I just wanted to make sure I didn't have to feel guilty about killing them."

He didn't know what to say to that, and any kind of thank you didn't seem enough so he patted her hand with his own and looked up at the group of people around him. Wick was the only one with worry in his eyes but everyone else held compassion or concern. Lincoln tilted his head to ask if Marcus was alright and the older man nodded back in confirmation.

If someone had told me that I would one day have a group of people in this life to call friends, I would have sent them to medical to have their head examined, Marcus thought.

Out loud he said, "Let's go get our people back."


	11. Run This Way

She stared, shock drifting through her body as she tried to process what the man in front of her had suggested. There was a brief moment where Abby resisted the urge to laugh and tell him to go hell. Her people needed her strong and they needed her to make a decision that wouldn't result in catastrophic deaths.

"You want us to come to this place and willingly be tortured?" Abby asked, sparing a glance fro Monty who was whimpering in the corner, "I have seen what you call medical practices here."

Dante' wanted to show compassion. What his son and that butcher of a doctor did behind his back was distasteful and crude but he wouldn't back down on his demands.

"I want you to willingly donate bone marrow for my people so no more innocents have to die in this pointless battle," Dante' told her with a wave at Monty that made her want to rip his arm off, "I believe a more humane way of extraction can be found if the subjects are willing to participate."

"No."

The two adults looked at Raven as she glared at Dante'.

"It isn't "willing participation" if everyone is forced to choose between torture or death. You can try to dress this in pretty words all you want but it won't change the fact that you are a sadistic asshole."

"Raven," Abby said with warning, "We are here to negotiate, not antagonize. No matter how rudely we were kidnapped, I am willing to talk if it means no more needless war."

The younger woman didn't say anything else but fixed Dante' with a burning glare and didn't move. Sighing at the stubborn woman, Abby turned back to Dante' and took a sip of water from her glass. She knew what her answer had to be in order to save not only her but Indra's people as well but it didn't make her happy.

"We will do it," Abby said, holding up a hand to keep everyone quiet while she kept talking, "but I have conditions. One, only adults will be asked to donate as I think you will agree our children have suffered enough for your cause."

Dante' frowned but waited for her next condition.

"Two, I will be the only doctor performing the extractions. My people trust me and I don't want any unnecessary damage down to them."

"Is that all?" Dante' asked.

"That's all I need from you," Abby said.

"The addition of the children would mean less extractions per person in your camp," Dante' told her.

Abby shook her head, "That point is not up for discussion. I will not put their lives in danger for your people and the older generation of sky people will fill your requirements just fine."

"What about the younger ones who didn't go through the extraction process here? Surely they won't have an issue with helping establish peace?"

Abby stared at him without speaking and finally Dante' sighed. The fact that the leader of the sky people even agreed to the extractions was more than he could have hoped for so he didn't press and as his eyes focused on the boy still panicking in the corner, he decided that it wasn't worth arguing over.

"It will go much faster if we had more than one person working on the extractions," Dante' countered, "Especially as your people will need time to heal between each procedure."

"I will pick two people from your team then," Abby offered, "and I will bring another person in to supervise until I am satisfied with their techniques."

The leader of the mountain men nodded his acceptance, "I think this will work Miss Griffin."

"Of course it will," Abby said, "because unlike people like your son, my people are not monsters."

Dante' didn't' answer her, his own disapproval of his son's tactics too fresh to defend the man. A noise outside drew his attention to the door and he watched it open to reveal his captain of the guard.

"Sir, we have a situation," the man said with a glance of trepidation around the room to the other occupants.

"What is it?" Dante' asked impatiently.

"A group of grounders is at the door and requesting a trade for one of the sky people," the nervous man said.

"Usually Cage handles all the dealings with the Ridge Tribe," Dante' told him with a look of confusion.

"It's not the Ridge Tribe sir," the captain said, "Cage is already there and well, you need to come quick."

As Dante' left, Raven moved to sit with Abby again, her eyes filled with confusion and hurt. She couldn't undetstand why Abby would agree to help the people who were the cause of so much torment to her friends. Crossing her arms, Abby waited for Raven say what was on her mind.

"How could you agree to that?" The mechanic finally spit out, her hands clenching at her sides and her nails digging into her skin.

Abby didn't blink, "I did what was needed Raven and I don't expect you to accept that but I do expect you to go along with it and help me make sure that our people survive."

Monty moaned from the back and Abby turned to see him sitting up in the chair with his head in his hands. He was trembling but when Abby brought him a glass of water he held the glass and drank without help. Getting him to eat something wasn't any more difficult and Abby sighed in relief that no permanent damage to the boy had occured.

"What is Raven yelling about?" He asked in a quiet voice while Abby brought him more slices of cheese.

Raven opened her mouth to answer but Abby spoke first, "Raven isn't happy with my negotiations with the leader of this place. He is going to let us go and if all goes as planned, no one else will die."

"What do we have to do?" He asked, his voice pitching higher while he started breathing heavy.

"Calm down Monty," Abby soothed, "you don't have to do anything. I promise that they are not going to hurt you or your friends anymore."

He choked back his tears and started to calm down as she rubbed his back. Giving him time to pull himsel together, Abby watched Raven stalk around the room looking for a way out.

"Raven, relax," Abby told her, "We are going to leave through the front door."

Raven sighed, "You seem to think he'll keep his word. I have my doubts."

Monty latched onto Abby's arm, "What did you promise him?"

"I said that if his men stopped chasing after us, the adults over 25 will donate bone marrow to the mountain until everyone is no longer trapped in here. They get to walk on the ground and we get to live."

Monty shuddered but nodded, "It makes sense that he would honor that agreement. If it were Cage negotiating, I would have my doubts."

Listening to Monty and Abby discuss the deal, Raven snorted and ate a piece of cheese while she came to terms with the fact that she wasn't going to get to blow this mountain to bits. A knock at the door had her scrambling in front of Abby but it was only Dante' returning.

"Abby, I need you to come with me," Dante' asked in a shaky fear filled voice.

"What is happening?"

"Miss Griffin, if you want this alliance to last, you need to come with me now."

"Don't Abby," Raven warned, "it could be a trap."

Abby put on her Chancellor face, "Raven, Monty, stay in this room and don't try to leave. I will be right back."

They nodded with their arms around each other and Abby let Dante' escort her out of the room. They walked in silence to the door where Abby first entered the mountain and a strange sight waited there. Six men with guns circled two more on the ground while another group of what appeared to be grounders held spears and swords in attack positions. No one moved as Abby and Dante' approached but when they stopped walking, a person from the grounder group took off their hood to reveal blond hair and a relieved face.

"Clarke?"

"Hi mom," She said with a smirk at the white haired man behind her mother, "nice to see you still in one piece even if it is in this hell hole."

Looking around at the group of people dressed as grounders, she saw her people looking back at her and Abby sighed. This was her rescue party.

"You've seen her, now let him go," Dante' spat out at the two men still on the floor.

Abby guessed that it was Cage pinned to the floor and looking at the man on top, she discovered that she knew who he was as well. His hair was wild, his clothes ripped and bloody, and his skin covered in dirt but his eyes gave him away as they filled with hope at the sight of her.

"Marcus?"


	12. You Should Start Running

She stood in front of him, beautiful, whole, and alive but Marcus still held the man under him to the ground and let his fury take control. Thinking about the destroyed medical center and the feeling of losing Abby completely, Marcus growled low in his throat while the man under him gasped for breath.

"Marcus?"

When he didn't answer, the group behind him stepped closer as Abby knelt down in front of him.

"What are you doing?" Abby asked in a gentle voice as if talking to a scared or hurt patient.

"Dealing out a little justice," he answered, squeezing his hand tighter around the other man's throat.

Seeing him here, a pair of handcuffs dangling from one wrist and his eyes wild, Abby remembered the crazed man from a month ago and she reached out her hand to calm him down.

"I'm alright Marcus. Cage didn't hurt me," she said with a gentle touch to his shoulder.

"Let my son go," Dante' said behind her and Abby turned to look at the older man's pale face.

Marcus laughed and the sound echoed in the voices of Clarke and Bellamy.

"They want peace Marcus and we can give it to them and save ourselves but you have to let him go," Abby pleaded.

A strangled laugh came from the group behind him and Abby looked up to see pity on Bellamy's face.

"You don't know," he said with disgust, "you were gone before it even happened and they have probably been treating you to food and water and talking peace and pretending like they didn't blow up our medical tent with a bomb planted in Jaha's stomach."

Dante' watched Cage's face as the boy talked and his shoulders dropped at the look of victorious glee on his son's red face.

"What have you done?" Dante' asked horrified.

As Marcus still had his hands on Cage's throat, he couldn't answer his father but the gleam of satisfaction in Cage's eyes told Dante' everything he needed to know. He stepped back and motioned for his people to drop their guns and join him.

Looking up into the Mountain Men's leader, Marcus said, "He came out to us, saying he had more bombs but we'd have to find our own bodies to hide them in. When the team searching for survivors cleared the wreckage, they found Thelonious in pieces and it was then we realized where the bomb was hidden. If you hadn't been kidnapped, Abby, if they hadn't..."

He trailed off as his gaze turned to Abby and her look of horror. Leaving Cage choking on the floor, Marcus stood and put his arms around her. He needed her clear headed, not in a state of shock.

"Abby, I am so relieved to know you are alright. We thought you were in medical when it exploded and if you had died..."

"I am glad you are alright mom," Clarke said from the back, breaking Marcus from his morbid train of thought, and the blonde smiled briefly before returning to her worried look, "Is Raven and Monty okay?"

Abby squeezed Marcus tight, remembering her duties, before releasing her hold and nodding, "Yeah, they are waiting for me to get back with news."

Cage coughed and spat on the floor, "I want that man dead. We will never have peace if he lives."

"Shut your mouth Cage. I have had enough of your theatrics," Dante' threatened from behind Abby, his mind still reeling from idea that his whole plan might have been ruined with Abby's death.

Staring at Cage, his face twisted in anger from his humiliation, Abby felt ice settle in her veins and she smiled. Marcus watched her face with curiosity. Her smile didn't reach her eyes and Dante' held up his hands in defense.

"I had nothing to do with the attack on your camp and if I had been notified of my son's actions, I would have put a stop to them."

"I believe you," Abby said calmly and Marcus took an unconscious step back at the cold tone of her voice.

Whatever Abby wanted from Dante', she was determined to get it and a wave of pride replaced the feeling of unease inside Marcus' heart. He couldn't quite believe that after everything, she still lived, still had the same stubborn spirit, and she loved him. A standoff with the people currently threatening their existence wasn't an appropriate time for romantic tangents so he pulled himself back to the problem at hand.

"We need to go somewhere and talk Dante', don't you think?" Abby asked the older man, "and perhaps put Cage somewhere a little confining where he can't run away?"

Dante' motioned to the guards behind him, "Please put my sorry excuse for a son in his room and make sure he stays there."

"Dad," Cage called, his voice catching as the men carried out Dante's orders, "Dad, you can't do this!"

Turning to Marcus and the disguised sky people, Dante' said, "I would prefer to speak to Ms. Griffin in private but I suppose one of you will insist on coming with her?"

"I am," Clarke said, stepping forward before Marcus could get the words out.

Looking at Marcus' frown, Clarke put her hand on his shoulder, "I don't want to lose sight of her again Kane, please."

"I will be right here waiting," Marcus told Abby before looking at Dante', "and we are staying on this side of the door."

Feeling Marcus pull away from her, Abby dragged him back and kissed him. The room went silent as the rumors about their relationship became fact. Clarke grinned at Bellamy, Lincoln grinned at Wick and Octavia gasped,

"I still get to tell Raven!" The young woman yelled and Marcus broke the kiss off with a laugh.

"You be careful," Marcus told Abby, "I don't think I'm up to losing you again."

She couldn't say anything to his declaration but kissed his lips again and walked off with Dante' and Clarke, leaving him and the rest of the sky people guarding their exit. Dante' brought the Griffin women to a little room not far from the exit. It held only chairs and books in boxes but Abby didn't mind where the discussion took place, only that Dante' agree to it. Clarke stood by the door, making sure they weren't disturbed while the two leaders discussed the situation.

"You need me to agree to this bone marrow treatment," Abby said, getting to business, "and I need justice for my people. I will agree to the treatments, which will take much longer now that my people have been reduced in numbers, but you will give me Cage who will be executed for his crimes against my people."

Dante' stared at the woman in front of him in disbelief, "You would ask me to turn over my own son? You want to start this truce with bloodshed?"

"I didn't start anything with bloodshed; your son did that. It is the only way I will agree to the treatments and it is the only way you save your people."

"He is my son!"

Abby's voice was cold and harsh," Decide then, your son, or your people."

Dante' sat down and buried his head in his hands. Abby knew she should feel sorry for him and if someone came to her and demanded peace at the cost of Clarke, she knew what her answer would be. Looking over at her daughter standing guard, Abby smiled. Clarke wouldn't send a bomb disguised as a person into a medical facility; she at least knew that much about her daughter. Cage made his grave and she planned to see him buried in it.

Marcus watched the hallway as the minutes ticked by, waiting for Abby to come back while Wick paced behind him and tried to be patient. Raven and Monty were being brought to the exit but Wick worried about Raven's explosive nature. Marcus touched his shoulder and the younger man turned around to see Raven and Monty, a little bruised but otherwise unharmed, being brought over. One of the guards held his arm to his chest but didn't seem upset at his injury.

"What happened to you?" The guard next to Marcus asked.

"It was made clear to me that trying to take guests somewhere without providing the destination is rude," he answered with a thumb at Raven, "it's all good now."

Raven gave a smirk in response and Marcus patted her arm as she walked by to where Wick stood with tears in his eyes.

"You're okay."

"Yeah, I'm okay."

Grabbing his shirt, Raven pulled him close and let his familiar scent wash over her. He stood and let her collapse around him, helping her stay vertical while Monty joined the group. Seeing Bellamy and Clarke helped to snap him out of his walking catatonia and they hugged the younger boy close, letting him borrow their strength.

"Is Nathan okay?" Monty asked, using his voice for the first time since being kidnapped.

Bellamy nodded, "he is wounded but when we left, Jackson was sure he would make a full recovery."

Clarke bumped his shoulder, "It will go a lot faster with you there so Finn isn't pestering him."

Monty smiled, his mind coming around to the conclusion that he would safe.

Turning to look at his people gathered behind him, Marcus grinned at each reunion and smiled at Octavia as she made her way towards Raven. He watched their exchange and when Raven glanced up in shock, he threw her a wink and watched her gasp.

"Abby and Marcus?" Raven asked in a loud voice.

Clarke laughed, "Yeah, it strangely works though."

"This is what happens when you get kidnapped," Raven moaned, "You miss all the good stuff."

"I'm glad you think my relationship is good stuff," Abby said and Marcus turned quick as he could to see her standing behind him.

"Whats the verdict Chancellor?" Lincoln asked from the back of the group.

Abby didn't say anything but she motioned Dante' forward. The man looked like hell but he stepped forward and two guards carrying an unconscious Cage between them stepped forward.

"They had to knock him out to keep him from struggling," Dante' explained, his voice full of tears.

Abby nodded and turned to her people, "We are going home but some of us will be back to give bone marrow for the treatment of their radiation weakness. Cage is coming with us and after he is tried by the council will be executed for his crimes against Camp Jaha."


	13. Nowhere to Run

The sight of Camp Jaha in front of her, broken and smoking but full of her people had Abby standing straighter and walking faster. Beside her, Clarke and Marcus walked with their guns at the ready in case of surprises. Abby only cared about getting into those gates, throwing Cage in a cell, and being home at last.

"Abby!"

Jackson's voice rang out as he raced to throw his arms around her, turning her around and checking for bruises or cuts. After Abby's inspection, he threw his arms around Marcus, whispering thanks into the older man's ear before turning back to his mentor.

"We have a makeshift shelter for those that survived the bomb and I set up a little room for you to rest," Jackson babbled as he led them through the gate and into the busy center of the camp.

The gates to the camp closed and Abby looked at Marcus with relief. She stood in their home and with their people. Industrious workers cleaned up the burned medical facility and fixed the gaps in the fence. Abby felt a painful stab to her chest as she looked at the freshly dug graves they'd passed on the way in. Looking at Cage, she found the man awake and slumped on the ground. She shivered as she thought of all the plans he'd had for them and the grounders.

Perhaps with his death, there could be peace, she thought.

Bryne walked up to the group and reached for the bound man. "Shall I take charge of the prisoner ma'am?"

Abby nodded, "Put him in any cell. I'll confer with Camp 100 and Indra before we figure out his sentencing."

Bryne gave her own nod and dragged Cage to his feet.

She looked to Abby and offered a swift salute, "Welcome home ma'am."

Abby attempted a return salute but dropped her arm as Bryne turned without another word and hauled their new prisoner to the cells. The man didn't struggle and Abby thanked the earth around her that there wouldn't be a scene. She didn't need a mob on her hands if the citizens of Camp Jaha found out that this was the man who'd ordered the bombing of their camp.

A hand against her shoulder broke Abby out of her grim musings.

"Abby, I'm going to check on the wounded if you want to come with," Marcus said, pointing to the tent leaning against the ark station.

She nodded and followed behind him, her eyes surveying the still damaged sections of the camp. Plans for a new garden area and a watch tower formed in her mind but she tucked the ideas away as Marcus pulled back the tent flap and let her walk in first. Among the recovering patients, Abby held hands and smoothed hair, all her focus on the one job she knew she could do as she comforted the hurt. Looking around the makeshift medical tent, anger built in her chest at the pain and horror Cage and his cronies had inflicted on her people.

"That man has to pay for this horror," Abby growled.

Marcus stepped forward from his spot against the wall, walking to stand next to her as she looked around the tent.

Glancing up at him, Abby motioned towards the door. "Not here."

He nodded and followed her out, falling into his role as protector even now that they were home and safe.

Abby didn't speak until they were back in the council room. "I know I'm not supposed to think this way but I want that man to suffer. A gunshot seems too quick."

"We could always make him endure the Death of a Thousands Cuts." Marcus offered.

"But killing him like the grounders isn't our way either." Abby paced the room. "It's got to send a message."

Marcus stepped into her path and gave in to his desire to wrap his arms around her small frame. Abby sighed and leaned into the embrace. As they stood, basking in being safe and with each other, Clarke and Bellamy entered holding hands.

"Okay, I see it now,"" Bellamy drawled and Clarke elbowed him in the stomach even as she laughed.

Abby's eyes darted to their joined hands and then up to her daughters face, smiling at the light blush across Clarke's cheeks.

"How are the kids?" Abby asked.

"Doing well," Clarke said, "Wick and Raven have disappeared into his tent so I can assume they're fine. We've got everyone else tearing down the fence between our two camps."

"What?" Abby exclaimed.

Clarke smiled. "So long as we keep making decisions as a committee, the both of us decided there wasn't a good enough reason to keep the camps separate anymore."

Abby rushed forward and pulled her daughter into a fierce hug. "We'll keep the committee, of course. In fact, there is a decision to make right now."

"About what to do with Cage?" Bellamy asked as Clarke drew away from her mother and took his hand once more.

Marcus nodded. "Yes. His death needs to happen before we send any of our people to Mount Weather."

"We've been talking about that. We asked around and I think there are a fair number among the hundred who will volunteer to donate their marrow after they see other volunteers come back." Clarke kept her eyes on her mother as she spoke.

"That makes sense," Abby mused, her thoughts turning to those of the adults who couldn't or wouldn't donate.

"Not Monty and Harper though," Bellamy interjected, "they still get nightmares about that place."

Clarke gave Bellamy a small hug, keeping her arms around him as she returned to the conversation. "We'll both volunteer of course."

"Fire," Abby said.

They all looked at her in confusion. Clarke looked to Marcus, wondering if her mother was finally breaking under all the stress.

"Cage should die by fire," Abby announced, "I want a stake raised in the square, I want him strapped to it, and I want him burned alive."

Bellamy and Clarke traded concerned looks while Marcus crossed his arms over his chest. His shocked face pained Abby but she didn't change her mind.

"We are standing here discussing how to help this group of people who are responsible for a whole lot of pain and suffering. We've got to be clear that we aren't weak just because we aren't continuing the fight. I know it's gruesome but it sends a clear message."

Silence fell on the room as each member of the committee thought about Abby's solution. Abby stared up at the bland gray ceiling, her mind already made up.

Clarke broke the silence. "It makes sense. We'd have to postpone till Indra and her people get here though."

Bellamy snorted. "Never mess with a Griffin or their cubs."

"Are you sure this is the answer Abby?" Marcus asked. "Fire won't be clean and it won't be pretty."

Abby assured him, "I know Marcus but it's what we need to do. I need an approval before we give the news."

"An act of mercy with an act of brutality," Bellamy said to Marcus, "it seems the best way to keep from looking weak."

Marcus looked down at his hands, the dirt under his nails, still streaked with blood.

"Alright," Marcus agreed, "fire it is."

With the decision made, the leaders of the newly joined camp went into action. A runner headed out of the gates and towards Indra's village with news of the decision. Volunteers headed to the woods to pick out a suitable tree and gather dry brush for the base. While the camp readied for its first burning, Abby hung up a pad on the side of the medical tent citing a need for marrow donators. She wrote her own name at the top and then handed the stylus to Marcus. He glared at her but signed his name anyway. Before long, Clarke and Bellamy added their names and the rest of the camp followed their trusted leaders. Abby's heart swelled with pride at the giving nature of her people.

Before she could take the first volunteers to the mountain though, Cage had to die.

"You ready Abby?"

Marcus pulled back the tent flap to Abby's new quarters and froze at the sight of her in a long leather coat, braided hair, and war paint smudged under her eyes.

"What is going on?" He asked.

"Indra said I needed to look less like a scavenger and more like a leader," Abby said, smoothing down the jacket. "What? You think it's too much?"

Marcus shook his head. "No, you look really good."

"I was going for fierce."

"Yeah, I think you succeeded."

Abby blushed and brought Marcus forward, leaning against his chest with a sigh. "I'd thought this would simple, but the longer it takes to happen, the more I want it to be over."

Marcus kissed the top of her head. "I know the feeling."

She didn't comment. She could tell his mind was replaying memories of his days as Ark Officer and all the people who'd floated out into space at the nod of his head. They stood with their arms wrapped around each other until someone called for Marcus and they untangled. Marcus lifted her chin and pressed a chaste kiss to her lips. Without another word, the pair stepped from her quarters and walked to the center of the camp.

A tall stake stood in the middle of the cleared space, its wood soaked with grease, and at the base sat a pile of dry brush and bark. Around the stake stood a mixture of grounders and Ark citizens, all waiting for the prisoner and not saying a word. It was Bryne's idea to have some of the kidnapped kids bring out Cage and tie him to the stake. Some had passed on the offer but Miller, Harper, Jasper and Monroe jumped at the chance. Monty said he didn't need to participate in the spectacle and stood next to Raven and Finn as Cage was dragged from his cell.

At the sight of the stake, Cage screamed and fell to his knees, causing Miller and the others to drag him the rest of the way. He lunged away from his captors at the base of the stake but Harper threw him against the brush and Miller and Jasper dragged him up to his feet. Monroe tied him to the pole and the four stepped away.

Abby stepped forward. "Cage Wallace, for the crimes against our people and the tribes of this earth, you are sentenced to death. Know that with your death, you buy the life of your people. Your fight is over."

Marcus nodded to Bryne and she stepped forward, lighting the mass of brush with her torch. Flames sprouted in the tinder as Cage struggled against his bonds. The greased stake lit at last and screams replaced his struggles.

Abby stood with her arms crossed across her chest, not looking away from the flames and Marcus found himself watching the onlookers. Some turned away from the sight like Finn or covered their ears to block out the shrieks like Wick and Sinclair. Indra's people watched in silence, not celebrating or cringing but doing their duty as witnesses to Cage's death.

Cage fell silent and limp. The crackling of flame being well fed filled the camp. Indra nodded to her second and walked to Abby's side.

"It is done," the stern clan leader noted, "tell the mountain that they have their peace but if any of my people go missing, I'll start looking for more mountain people to burn."

"I'll relay the message," Abby said.

Indra gave her a final nod of respect then walked towards the camp gate, her people falling into line behind her. After the grounder departure, the camp citizens dispersed as well. Monty and Miller stood watching the body burn and as Abby watched the younger man fall apart in Miller's arms, she hoped he could find some peace now. Looking around, she found Marcus talking to a couple of guards and joined him.

"-after the flames are gone of course."

"What are you talking about?" Abby asked.

Marcus gestured over to the still burning stake. "I'm giving these two the task of taking care of whatever's left of Cage's body once he's done burning."

"Oh good."

The two guards accepted their assignment and left their leaders to their conversation. Marcus kept an eye on the two guards until they assumed posts on either side of the stake and then turned his attention to Abby. She looked ready to fall over and he stepped closer to be ready to catch her if she did.

"It's over," she sighed.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm better than I thought I would be. I thought I'd be freaking out that we just burned a man alive."

"But you're not?"

No, I just want a full night's sleep," Abby said, yawning against the back of her hand.

Marcus hummed and laid an arm around her shoulder. "Sounds good to me. You know, in all this chaos we've still never spent a night together?"

"I'm aware."

"I think it'd be a good idea before the next emergency strikes."

"At least before you lose your memory again."

"Agreed."

Taking Marcus by the arm, she led him from prying eyes and into her quarters where Marcus took advantage of the privacy to kiss her properly. This wasn't a stolen kiss in the dark, or a comfort kiss. This kiss shook Abby to her core and let her dream of holding onto Marcus forever. When the embrace ended, Marcus placed more kisses on her nose and forehead before pulling back and looking into her eyes.

"What's your name again?" Marcus quipped.

Abby laughed.


End file.
